Christmas Drabbles 2011
by Wynja
Summary: Dark and light drabbles, one for each day until Christmas. Mostly Sladin. SLASH, of course! I hope you enjoy!
1. 01 Love and Magic

**WELCOME TO THE CHRISTMAS DRABBLES OF 2011!**

A/N: Merry Christmas **bee27**!

This is rather different from your wish, but your idea sparked this one and it has some of the same ingredients... ;)

Genre: AU! I had trouble placing this in either dark or light, but it got light in the end… slightly angsty, though! **Read more about the Christmas drabbles in the bottom A/N.**

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**Love and Magic**

Hurried footsteps echoed in the stone hallway of the castle as a young man made his way to the royal suit. The latest battle had been won, but at a very dear price.

"I heard you've been reckless again, my king…"

King Arthur opened his eye, the other one swollen shut, and looked up at the man standing at his bedside.

"Well, Merlin… at least I won…" he smirked. The smirk turned into a grimace of pain as a cough racked his body. Hands were immediately on his face and chest but the injured king weakly batted them away. "Don't fuss, boy, you know it won't do any good."

"Don't call me 'boy', Arthur, I'm older than _you_ are!" the black-haired man hissed down on his white-haired patient.

"Well, blame your magic for looking as manly as a page…" the king chuckled, the sound horrifyingly wet.

"You never complain when you bed me…" the wizard snorted, a soft look in his eye.

"Oh-oh."

"What?"

"It must be very bad if you give me doe-eyes like that…" the king said.

"It is… it _is_ bad," Merlin nodded, the warmth in his expression exchanged for pain.

"Well… Modredus is dead, I take comfort in that. I would wish, though…"

"Wish for what?" the magician asked. "If it is my power, my king…"

"I doubt it…" the battered man grinned and shook his head. "What I want is beyond even _your_ talents…"

"Let _me_ be the judge of that," Merlin smirked back. "But please do not ask for flying pigs again? It got ugly last time…"

"If it had been so simple… what I wish for is… more time… more time with you…" the older-looking man's hand closed over Merlin's, which had stayed on his chest.

The wizard sank down on the edge of the bed, leant over, and kissed his kings lips.

"This is my wish as well… but it is too late in this time... I'm sorry… I cannot save you."

"In this time?" the king said.

"Yes… I can bind our souls together… this will guarantee that we get at least one more chance on this Earth… but it's risky…"

"How so?"

"One of us could come back as a _woman_…" Merlin smirked.

The king gave a weak laugh.

"Perish the thought…"

"Also our age-differences might be too great… or we might not recognize each other…"

"We will… we _must_… I won't forget your eyes…" the king insisted.

"I won't forget you either, I am sure of it. I will know as soon as I see your face…" Merlin mumbled. "With your permission, then, I'll begin."

"With my permission and my blessing…" the white-haired man nodded, his voice growing weak.

A silence settled as Merlin worked. He could feel his lover slipping away as he linked their souls together.

"All done… only one thing left…" The wizard pulled out a long, sharp knife.

"What… no…" the king hissed, his breath barely there anymore.

"Be calm, my love…" Merlin said softly, the knife pointing at his own heart. "I've bound our souls… I have to join you…"

"No…!"

But the king's last command was ignored as the magician thrust the knife between his own ribs.

"I… never meant…" Arthur said brokenly.

"_I_ did… I always meant to follow you…" Merlin's startling blue eyes met the other man's gray. His hand, shaking slightly, caressed the king's left cheek, leaving a dark coppery-red mark the same color as was spreading on his chest. "Just… promise me… that whoever we will be… that you will love me."

"I will… and I won't take no for an answer…" the king mumbled, a small smirk on his lips.

Merlin slowly fell forwards, over Arthur's chest.

"Good…. I can be… stubborn…"

With that their hearts shuddered to a stop and their souls escaped. Together.

* * *

"Slade!" Robin growled out the name. "Give up _now_!"

The arrogant man merely snorted, and, with a new growl, the teen attacked. The fight was vicious and nearly ended for good as the mercenary swiped his staff close to the hero's head. Robin threw himself back, but the end of the weapon grazed his temple, snatching on his mask, which tore, distorting his vision. He could hear Slade coming after him again, and, to be able to see, he ripped his mask off, just in time to raise his bo-staff, blocking another strike. He looked up at the villain and the man froze.

Instead of seizing the moment and attacking again, Robin pulled back a little. He needed to catch his breath, and, if possible, reach for an extra mask in his belt.

"I… I _know _you…" Slade suddenly said, causing the teen to blink.

"Yes, I'm the one who are going to kick your ass…" Robin growled.

"No… I… you don't recognize me?"

"Yeah, you're Jump City prison's new inmate," the teen snorted, wondering over the man's odd behavior, but grateful for the breather.

Then Slade removed his mask.

Robin's heart all but stopped and he instantly knew why the man had acted so strange.

"...y-you?"

"Yes."

"I… I didn't know! The mask-"

"_I_ knew… I knew there was something about you… something that drew me to you, made me _want_ you… but I didn't know _how_… I thought I wanted to conquer you, own you… but then I saw your eyes…"

While Slade had been talking, almost mumbling, Robin had had time to recover, and he threw his bo-staff down, flying into the man's arms. The next moment their lips met and centuries of love and longing between two bound, lost, souls swept through them.

As they parted, to catch their breaths, Slade noticed that his lover's cheeks were wet by tears, even more so than his own.

"Merl- Robin? Is something wrong?"

"I… it wasn't supposed to be like this… I lost my powers. I'm just human… I was supposed to find a way so that we would never be apart again!"

"Ah… I don't think the fates have been as cruel as you fear… It's _my _turn to have the answers this time and, trust me, we will never have to say goodbye again…"

_The End_

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A/N: Yup, I messed with the Arthur-saga… the idea originally included them having sex on the round table, which I really enjoyed (the idea, that is, I haven't tried it…) but this little plot-bunny was born instead and it was all so small and black and cute and emo I had to write it… ;) Just a strange way to explain their, obviously powerful, bond… ;)

Oh, and I could have made either of them Arthur/Merlin but I quite liked the idea that their "meta-human-status" switched in their next lives… as Arthur Slade was a regular, though powerful, human, and in his currant life, Robin is… fair's fair!

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**SEMI IMPORTANT INFO ABOUT THE CHRISTMAS DRABBLES IN GENERAL!**

Yeah, hi and welcome! As you might already know every other drabble will be light and every other dark, that means tomorrow it's time for a dark drabble!

Sometimes, like with this, I have had trouble deciding which category a drabble should go in… true love doesn't automatically mean it's light, and bad things can happen in light stories too… but there will be warnings and stuff…

The drabbles are already written, and have you missed your opportunity to wish for one, you must have lived under a rock for the past five months because I have been talking about this eeeeeeverywhere… ;)

I will use the term "Christmas", that is, I wish you, and the people who has gotten the day's drabble, a merry Christmas… If you do not celebrate Christmas, please mentally change this word to whatever you DO celebrate. If you don't celebrate ANYTHING, then just have a merry… day… or something. I'm Swedish. We don't care about trampling on religious toes… ;)

So… 25 drabbles coming up. I got a lot more than 25 wishes/suggestions… the rules were that I would write anything that got my plot-bunnies humping, and I did, but, truth be told, I have only picked one idea per person… that doesn't mean someone might not get more than one wish written, as I have also added anonymous requests, so if it turns out that this happened: congratulations!

If I have not written your request, it's of course because I hate you. –grin- Nah! There are many reasons why I didn't pick a particular prompt… maybe it felt like something I had already written, maybe it felt like something I've read from someone else… maybe I didn't know anything about the genre/basic idea and it would either take me too much research to make it work or I'm not very interested in the subject…In a few cases several of you have also suggested similar ideas, and if the plot bunny bit on one, I can't very well write the others as well… none of this is your fault! If, by the end of this, you realize I haven't picked your idea and you want to ask why, just go ahead, I've saved every one of them in a special list…

Where was I? Yes, 25 drabbles, and, of course, on New Year's, a 26'th! And what THAT will be, will be up to you, because that will be a SEQUEL to one of these drabbles, up to the 24'th (because the 25'th is more reflections that a story, and I could use the extra day there…)… The voting won't begin until the 24'th though, but I thought I'd tell you now so you can make a note if/when you read a drabble you really can see continued…

Well, that's it… as usual some drabble will be short, some long.

Oh, **I MIGHT NOT HAVE TIME TO ANSWER REVIEWS EVERY DAY**, but I'll try… I WON'T have time to make corrections, though, so, unless it's a REALLY big mistake that kinda ruins the story, you don't have to tell me about it… if it is, though, I want to know… ;)

Remember, the drabbles will stay up so you don't HAVE to read every day, they will wait for you… ;) Also, I love reviews, but don't feel pressured into reviewing every day either, as I said, I might not have time to answer them…

I hope your December will be great!

All the best!

/Wynja


	2. 02 Duty

A/N: Merry Christmas **kurosaki9**!

It's day two, which means it's a dark story today! It's an very interesting AU-idea **kurosaki9 **came up with, I think, and I don't think I changed anything, just expanded it a little…

**Warnings:** this is on the darker side… Slade is not very cuddly in this at all… (and no, I didn't get the amount of eyes wrong). If you want to avoid dark stories all together, it will be safest to skip this. If you are unsure, you will know which way this story is heading in time to stop reading if you so wish.

Quite a lot of cartoon characters were harmed during the writing of this story.

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**Duty**

"General Wilson?"

"Yes, Lieutenant?" the white haired man turned from where he had been standing, looking out of the window.

"The reports from the latest test-group are here, Sir. The…" the younger man checked the folder he was holding. "The Teen Titans, Sir. The West group."

"Ah, yes… that unpatriotic bunch. Well?"

"The trials were mostly unsuccessful. The Tamaranian and the shape-shifter died quickly, the serum reacted badly to their DNA… and then there was a surprise."

"Yes?"

"The leader. He wasn't meta-human."

"Really?" the General raised an eyebrow and went over to his desk, quickly finding his own file on the group, and flipped it open. The first photo was on the leader in question, a black-haired young man with small a cocky grin on his face. General Wilson remembered taking a special interest in the very skillful teen, and the news was unexpected.

"Did he turn out to be fully human or alien?"

"Fully human, Sir."

"Ah," Wilson closed the folder. "So I suspect he didn't survive?"

"That was the first surprise; he did…" the Lieutenant said. "Actually we've never had a smoother transition, except for-"

"Except for what?"

"The mind-control. That was a complete failure. He seems to have had extensive training to withstand brainwashing and, according to biopsy-results, he has been subjected to many kinds of mind-altering drugs and processes over the years. I wouldn't call him immune, but… so far…"

"Interesting."

"Because of it, we never gave him the final injection to activate his powers... Should we have him terminated?"

The white haired officer thought about it. Termination was the logical step to a failed experiment, of course, but there was something about this boy…

"No. Bring him to the holding cell in my quarters… it's been a while since I had a personal project…" the man smirked. "The other two, then?"

"The cyborg was a complete success. The magic-user turned out to be half demon, so it was touch and go for a while, but we managed to get the dose right. We have yet to test them, but I would say we have two more soldiers ready to join our ranks, Sir.

"Good job, Lieutenant. The next group on the list… I believe it is the H.I.V.E, correct?"

"Yes, Sir. Some of them have volunteered."

"That was nice to hear. Make sure to still brainwash them."

"Really, Sir?"

"Oh, yes… I'm very suspicious of volunteers…" the man smirked. "Was that all?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Then you are dismissed."

"Thank you. Have a good day, Sir."

The man only nodded as he sat down behind his desk and opened the folder again. His grey eyes glittering as he saw the young man's photo again.

"So… _Robin_… I think I'll enjoy getting to know you…"

General Slade Wilson had joined the army early, too early, after lying about his age, and he had never looked back.

He had become known for his devotion, but also his skill and strength, and as a secret military branch had approached him, presenting the idea of super-soldiers to him and his group, he had accepted this challenge as well. He had been the sole survivor.

The drug had made him temporarily insane and, as he had broken free from his binds, he had killed his own wife who had come to visit. His wife had been pregnant at the time, with their first child. A son. Sometimes Slade thought that it was the best thing he had ever done.

It had felt heavy at first, of course, but what would a family do, other than to weigh him down? They would have been a liability, nothing else. He had nurtured these thoughts before the experiment as well, but they had become so much clearer afterwards… his wife had already complained about Slade's… _tastes_ which he had acquired in the army, as the man had not been able to hide them completely. He liked women, of course, but there was nothing like the overwhelming sense of control he felt as he shoved a Private down on his hands and knees and took him from behind. It was even better if he wasn't willing. They learned their place best that way.

Being the only survivor of the experiment meant one thing: he was valuable. He then went on to prove just _how_ valuable, both on the battlefield, on one-man-missions and in the planning department. His superiors had been ready to call the experiment a failure, but Slade wouldn't hear about it. He was _better_ now; a better man and a better soldier, and what the U.S. needed was more like him. Well. With a few alterations, of course. The General was very conscious of the fact that, had it not been for his superior sense of moral and duty, he could have become a loose cannon. Therefore, he figured, he would make sure that future soldiers wouldn't have that problem. They would be completely obedient to those of higher rank.

So far the experiments were only somewhat successful. No one knew why Slade had survived, and the man was sure that this Robin's DNA was being frenetically tested at the moment to try and find any answers there. The man hoped they would get results, of course, for the country's sake. The human subjects had died or become insane, so they had moved on to meta-humans with slightly better results. Still there were much work to be done on the drugs themselves, and the procedure, to make them safer… it was a good thing that the world was full of test-subjects…

The general smiled and leaned back in his chair before lifting the phone and ordering lunch to his office. He would work through it and then leave for his personal quarters early to welcome his new guest. He was quite looking forward to it…

* * *

Robin groaned as he woke up. The last couple of days had just been a blur of pain and, for some reason, images of the American flag.

He suspected that it had all started a couple of weeks ago, when a man from the military had asked for a meeting with the Titans. He had carefully announced that the government was looking for volunteers for a Special Forces unit. Robin, and the rest of the team, had declined, of course: they worked for peace in their own way, after all. The man had nodded and left, not pressing the issue at all, and the Titans had thought that that was it. Not so. Sometime later, they had been called out on a mission, and there they had been attacked by a small army of military personal. They had fought back, but this was the US forces and Robin had to admit that he had been confused and held back a little, hoping for some kind of explanation. The last thing he remembered from that day was the piercing pain of a dart hitting his back.

After that… Robin shuddered and curled up a little… he remembered the pain… remembered demanding to find out what was going on, to see his teammates, to be let go… no one had as much as talked to him. There were just short glimpses of being conscious without any pain, of someone asking questions over an intercom, of him telling them all to go to hell… of symbols of military ranks flashing on a screen… and the flag… Robin all but hated those colors now.

He was scared for his friends, but he also had a nagging worry in his guts as he remembered calling Titans East a few days before their own attack without getting an answer. He had shrugged it off then, thinking they were probably busy on a mission, but now… now he wondered…

He sat up. He didn't recognize the room, but it seemed that every time he had opened his eyes he had been somewhere different. It was small, no windows; only tiny vents in the ceiling. The bed he was sitting on was attached to the walls at three sides, as the room was only as wide as the bed was long. There was a sink and a toilet behind a tiny stone partition and nothing else. The walls and floor seemed to have some kind of rubber coating, easy to wash, and the floor was tilting slightly towards a drain in the corner. The air smelled of what he thought was disinfectant or something similar. He stood up and slowly made his way over to the door, which was directly opposite the bed, only a few steps away. His whole body hurt like he had been working out extremely hard, or had growing-pains, and he felt a bit dizzy as well.

The door had a peephole but it was for looking in, not out. It also had a small hatch, which Robin suspected was for serving food. It was also locked. The material seemed to be steel, nothing he could kick down, but he gave it a shot anyway. He winced a bit afterwards; he hadn't realized that his feet were naked. He looked down on himself at that point. He was wearing some kind of blue scrubs. The fabric felt more like paper than cotton, though, and he thought the material might be disposable.

He slowly looked around. He was a prisoner, or possibly a prisoner slash patient. The people who had taken him and his team had appeared to be the US military, but he found that hard to believe. If they were, however, this had to be something that could be sorted out. It had to be a mistake. Maybe they had thought the Titans were the enemy, for some reason, and… well, maybe he had had a bad reaction to the sedative? Maybe what he had been through the last couple of days had been mere hallucinations? Robin hoped that was true, but he didn't really believe it.

He would stay calm, though, for now. He saw no sign of cameras, but those vents could hide anything. Feeling a bit stronger he went to drink some water at the sink, and then looked at the strange rubber wallpaper. It had been peeled away a bit at the corner by the door, and the Titan looked closer. It looked like someone had scratched it, someone desperate to get out. The teen shuddered and kneeled down, pulling at the small flaps. Behind it was only cement, but this was scratched slightly too, and stained with something Robin was sure was blood.

He stood up hastily, shivering again, feeling his heart beat faster. He sank down on the bed again. His only comfort there was a thin rubber mattress, which was attached to the bed, and no pillows or blankets. He settled down to wait. Someone would come, and then, hopefully, everything would be cleared up.

* * *

When the door finally swung open, several hours later, Robin shot to his feet. A single man walked in and closed the door behind him. The teen took it all in within seconds; the heavily decorated uniform, the tall, muscular build, the white hair and short beard, both immaculately kept, and the very cold, grey eyes, which, however, seemed to have a certain… interest in them.

"Good afternoon Robin," the man said, his deep voice sending shivers down the teen's back.

"So you know who I am, general?" Robin answered, after a short glance at the four silver stars on the man's shoulder.

"Of course."

"There has to be some kind of mistake, my team and I-"

"Are no more, I'm afraid. You are now the property of the US military, and in your case, more specifically; me."

"W-what are you talking about? Are you insane? The president will hear about-"

"Oh, she knows. Do you want to see her signature on the forms? Or she herself, perhaps? It can be arranged."

"I want to see my team!"

"The survivors do not wish to see you, I assure you. They do not socialize with traitors."

"Sur-survivors? Traitors?" Robin felt his knees weaken, but he forced himself to remain upright.

"Cyborg and Raven now serves the United States of America," the man confirmed.

"So… so St-Star? Beast Boy?"

"Are deceased, yes. But I do like to put failure behind me… I seem to have forgotten to introduce myself. My name is General Slade Wilson. You may call me Slade... see it as a gesture of good will, if you'd like."

"Good will, my ass! Let me out of here!" Robin was angry and chocked more than anything else. He couldn't really believe that his friends were dead, or that this man was who he said he was.

"No. Remove your mask."

The teen's hand flew to his face, a sense of familiarity, of safety, flaring up inside him when he felt it still there.

"No way," he growled.

The backhanded blow came out of nowhere and left Robin lying half across the bed, panting. The surprise lasted only a split second, and then the teen was on his feet again, striking back. The punch was blocked with a force Robin hadn't expected, and suddenly he was slammed into the wall next to the bed.

"I can be a very nice man, Robin…" the General purred in his ear as the teen fought for breath, the body of the man pressing into him, half crushing his chest. "But I'm not a nice man around bad boys… But you are new. You will learn…"

The teen hissed as his mask was ripped from his face, and then a hand held his jaw in a firm grip as he was forced to look up on his prison guard.

"Unexpected. But good. You are prettier than most of my previous subjects. I might keep you for a while."

Robin's insides turned to ice as he thought he understood the implications.

"What… what do you mean?"

"It's very simple, my boy… If you won't serve your country… you'll serve _me_."

* * *

Slade smirked as he saw that his new property was starting to get the picture. This stage was always so precious. The wide eyes, the fear, the-

He hadn't expected boy to be able to get out of his grip, though, and the follow-up kick was surprisingly fast. Still, the man caught the foot, of course.

"Aww… look at those cute little toes… maybe I'll suck on them later… or cut them off…" he said thoughtfully and then kicked out himself, aiming that the teen hero's free foot. Robin naturally lost his balance and fell on the bed, hitting his head on the wall. Still, as the teen looked up, those blue eyes were filled with so much contempt and fighting-spirit it made Slade's mouth water and his cock twitch and lengthen slightly. This would be a treat.

* * *

Robin tried to pull his foot free, but the bruising grip only hardened, making bursts of pain run up his leg. He kicked out then, with his free leg, putting everything he got behind it. The man, Slade, only caught this foot as well.

"Oh, look at this…" the General said and spread his legs wide as he stepped in between them. "You are a very accommodating boy, aren't you?"

"Let go!" Robin snarled. Slade was not only holding his legs, he was lifting up as well, keeping the teen flat on his back with his ass slightly in the air. Robin scrabbled for purchase, something to hold on to so he could pull free, but his hands only found the wall and the thin rubber-clad bed, nothing he could grip.

"Let's see what you hiding, then, shall we?" the man said, and pushed the teen's legs together again, taking a hold of both ankles in one hand. He stepped forward and pushed the ten's legs up, slightly bent at the knees, like the hero was a baby about to have his diaper changed. This was his chance, Robin understood, there was no way the man could hold him like that for long. His hands pushed against the wall behind him, and, instead of pulling his feet back, he kicked them out. Slade didn't as much as budge.

Robin understood that he must have a rather incredulous expression on his face, because the man chuckled. Robin snarled and tried again; he pushed with everything he got against the wall, and he was getting nowhere. Then he suddenly pulled, but again his legs weren't moving. What_ was_ moving, however, was the man's free hand, which was caressing Robin's hip and ass.

"Don't touch me!" It might not have been a very inventive thing to say, but Robin was almost panicking at this point.

"No, I think I'll do some more of it…" the man smirked. "Let's see what we have here…" With a hard tug the paper-like trousers were ripped clean off, falling to the floor in tatters.

"No!"

"Yeeess…" the man countered. "Very nice… very nice indeed… what about your upper body, then?"

As he reached over, Robin grabbed his hand with both of his own, trying to stop him, but the teen might just as well have been a kitten for all the good it did. As Slade got close enough Robin let his hand go and focused on landing blows on his chest and shoulders instead. The man's face was still just out of reach, and the teen knew he was hitting all the right spots, all the nerve centers, all the really painful places that would have a regular man crumpled on the floor by now. Slade just made a low grunt. Once. The noise of his shirt ripping as well, made Robin yell out in frustration.

"Oh, shhh... I know you're impatient…" the man purred and moved his hand over the teen's ass again, pressing his fingers into the crack.

Robin yelled out again, beyond words. His whole weight was on his upped back and neck, and even though his arms were free, he just couldn't reach. He tried to raise himself on his hands in the hope to push the man again, but a simple twist of Slade's hand holding his ankles made him lose his balance.

"Are you uncomfortable? Let's make things better than, shall we?" the man leered. He quickly leaned over and grabbed one of the teen's arms before flipping him over.

Robin gasped as his stomach hit the edge of the bed, hard. His feet were now free, but Slade was between his thighs and Robin's knees didn't even reach the floor. He put his feet down and tried to push himself up, but he only managed to push his ass into the General's groin, and not nearly hard enough for it to hurt, only hard enough for him to feel something he really didn't want to: the man was aroused.

"If you touch me, I'll fucking kill you!" Robin snarled. This was nothing he would normally say, he didn't even recognize his own voice, but he was beyond any ounce of normalcy at the moment.

"I'd like to see you try… I might _let_ you try, actually, another day… might be entertaining… for now, though…"

Robin heard the man spit, something warm landing just at the small of his back. One hand was holding him down, pressing his upper body into the mattress, while the fingers of the other hand ran through the small, wet, puddle. A moment later the teen felt them again, at his opening.

"No! _NO_! Don't-!"

"Oh, I could take it slowly… tie you up, perhaps… tell you exactly what I am going to do beforehand… bring some toys… I do that to some, you know. But not you. I'm going to fuck you right now," the man pushed two of his fingers inside the teen, who yelled out. "I'm doing you a favor… the sooner you learn it won't kill you, the sooner your training can begin… I just know you are going to be special…"

Robin snarled and tried to reach the man by bending his arms behind his back. He scratched hard at an arm, but the uniform protected it from any harm. The man was still fully clothed and even though the teen tied to use his legs to kick at the man and slam his knees into his legs from each side, it seemed the man didn't notice it.

The fingers in him twisted and turned while they were pushed in and out. Robin had tried to get away from them until the edge of the bed was pressed so hard into his stomach and hips that it hurt more than the fingers themselves. Another wad of spit landed on his back, and the fingers withdrew. He heard the sound of a zipper and knew what was coming. He wanted to yell again, to beg, but he clenched his teeth shut. This bastard wouldn't listen; he would only enjoy it. His hands clutched the rubber mattress as he felt the thing he had been waiting for; the tip of the man's cock. It pushed and pushed, the pressure only building, but, for a moment, Robin thought he would be able to keep it out. Then a hard slap landed on his ass and the teen yelped. At that moment the man pushed again, and the yelp turned into a scream. The pain was alien, Robin didn't know how to deal with it, and the humiliation was almost as bad.

"Good boy… here we go… keep struggling… it only makes you a tighter fuck…" the man drawled.

Robin could feel friction burns on his chest and stomach from his fight, but he still kept it up, even as the man started pounding into him, smashing his hips against the bed until they were covered with scrapes and bruises.

He would keep fighting. He would never _serve _this man, no matter what he did. After what felt like an eternity a few last, especially brutal thrusts, signaled the end of the torment. The pressure on his upper back, as well as the painful fullness between his legs, disappeared.

"That a boy, Robin… I'm very pleased with you," the man told him, the sound of a zipper echoing in through the room again. The teen barely heard him; he was curling in on himself on the floor. "Now that you know why you are here, I'm going to teach you that I never lie. I think I'll let you spend some time with the heads of your dead friends; that should help… after that… well, the president_ is_ due for a visit next month… You can appeal to her for your release, but she is not keen on traitors and terrorists…"

"I'm…_ not_…" Robin started, fighting to make his voice more than a hoarse whisper.

"A traitor? Of course not…" the man strode away to the door, opened it with a click and turned around. "Now you're a whore."

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Why does Slade has two eyes? Because he killed Addie before she had a chance to shoot him! Smart man… ;) And no, that doesn't mean that he has two eyes in all AU/What if stories of mine from now on, I just thought it would be fun to go with that… let me amuse myself, alright? About the canon-ness, I know Grant was concived BEFORE the experiment and Joseph AFTER, and in this Addie is pregnant with Grant when she dies… so I took the liberty of placing that pregnancy when the experiment takes place, though that might not be true… probably not.. .I'm just too lazy to try to find the right issue and read about it… doesn't matter, it happens like that in THIS story, at least… ;)


	3. 03 All Grown Up

**EDIT:** thank you to **DragonsDreamer** who discovered a plot-hole in the last story. Shouldn't Robin have Slade-like powers if the experiment was successful? Yes, he should! I had forgotten to mention that the powers needed one final injection to activate, as a safety measure, but it's in there now... damn line was only in my head... A big bunch of cookies has been given! ;)

A/N: Merry Christmas to **yay **(anonymous reviewer). I changed the prompts a tiny bit, for this one, how you don't mind…

Genre: today is another "L-day" and in- no, not lesbian day, this is still Sladin: Light-day! No specific warnings for this one, I think… ;)

**All Grown Up**

"You know, Bruce, I _am _eighteen!" Robin half growled with his hands on his hips. He was glaring at his former mentor who didn't look too perturbed as he stood, leaning against one of the many fireplaces in Wayne manor. Right now they happened to be in the library, Robin, Bruce and, sitting in a comfy chair just to the side of the fire: Slade Wilson. They were staying the night too, and it fell upon Robin's shoulder to make sure it wouldn't be a disaster.

"Just," the millionaire only said.

"Yeah, well,_ just_. Still, I'm not a child anymore."

"I'm aware."

"Good! Because I've been leading the Titans for the last five years, and I deserve some credit. I know Slade might not be your favorite person in the world, but he is mine, and you just have to accept that!"

"He's a mercenary," Bruce stated.

"Yes, that's what his license says. His _mercenary _license. Issued by the _government_. By which he is _not_ wanted, by the way, not in any state."

"Right now."

"For over a year!"

"He doesn't seem to have much to say for_ himself_," Bruce muttered and cast a cold glare in the other formerly-not-so-legal mercenary's direction.

"What _can_ I say?" Slade smirked and threw his hands out. "Robin has not been wrong, so far, and I rather enjoy hearing him fight for me… I'm a romantic."

"Yeah, sure you are…" Robin snorted, a similar sound coming from Bruce at the same time. The younger man's eyes were warm, however, as he looked at his lover. Then he coughed and straightened up again, putting on a more businesslike face.

"Yeah, so… I'm eighteen… I'm in a relationship… and I'm going solo."

"Ah, so that was the second piece of news you talked about on the phone," Bruce said. "And what are your reasons for this? Did Slade-"

"No, Slade didn't influence me in _any _way, but yeah, it's partly because of us. We're all grownups at the Tower now, we all have relationships on and off, and it's getting… crowded. I need some space, and living in a collective household like that… well, let's just say I'm getting tired of people not knocking."

"There are locks," Bruce shrugged.

"I try to remind him," Slade nodded.

Robin ignored them and continued. "I need to live on my own, well… with _Slade_, but to have some privacy… You understand that part, don't you?"

"I do."

"Good… then… Well, I was thinking of moving to Blüdhaven… That place could really need some help, and it's close to Gotham, but it won't work unless you accept that I'm an adult!"

"I do."

"Really?"

"Yes. I think you will do great on your own, and I think Slade has told you so too. You don't need my permission, which I'm _also_ rather sure he has said…"

"I did," Slade nodded.

"Wow… you're… you're pretty cool with this. I thought for sure there would be at least a bloodstain on the carpet or something by now…" Robin said.

"You have disappointed him, Bruce. He kept practicing speeches all the way here…" Slade chuckled.

"Well… I have known about Slade for about six months…" the Dark Knight admitted.

"You have? How? WHO?"

"Beast Boy let it slip when I called one night and you were… unavailable," Bruce shrugged.

"And you didn't fly across the continent to rip Slade's balls off?" Robin gaped, almost sounding a little disappointed.

"Oh, we had a… talk."

"You… so… you knew… and you knew he knew and he knew and I didn't and… _why didn't you tell me_?"

"You were hard to follow there for a while…" Slade confessed. "Did you mean to ask me why I didn't tell you about Bruce knowing about us?"

"_YES_!"

"Well, firstly we decided not to tell you together. We figured that if you thought our relationship was serious enough, you'd tell him when you felt ready. And you did. And I didn't want to ruin your little independence-moment…" the man added with a little grin.

Robin closed his eyes and seemed to be counting.

"Funny," Bruce chuckled. "Whenever I had the misfortune of running into your… _boyfriend_, I usually ended up with that expression as well…"

"I'm trying to be mature and not yell at him."

"I understand perfectly, trust me."

"Well, okay, you kept this from me but that's better than Slade bleeding to death on the floor, I guess…" Robin sighed.

"Excuse me? Who's side are you on?" the mercenary complained.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure Bruce could take you if he was angry enough…" the teen smirked.

"Why thank you, Robin! You're getting a car for Christmas…" the millionaire grinned, giving the mercenary a smug look.

"I was thinking of buying him a plane…" Slade said airily.

"Oh, act your age you two…" the teen sighed.

At that moment Alfred appeared in the door.

"Your bubble-bath is ready, Master Richard."

"Great, Al, thanks!" Robin grinned.

"Oh, he's_ so_ grown up…" Bruce chuckled, so only the white haired man could hear it.

"Well, night, Bruce," Robin said, walking towards the door. He looked back and gave Slade a very telling look. "Planning on joining me any time soon?"

"Oh, he has grown up… in _some _ways…" the mercenary leered at his host and followed.

_The End._

A/N: the original prompt was "it's time for your bubble bath, Robin" but I at once thought Alfred should be the one to say it, and he wouldn't say it like that, so I rewrote it to "Your bubble-bath is ready, Master Richard." I kinda think it's the bubble-bath that is the THING here, anyway… ;)


	4. 04 The Other Way Around

A/N: Merry Christmas **KaliAnn**!

She had an interesting idea, and I don't think I've ever written it before, so here goes….

DARK: Yeah, it's dark-day today, but as dark stories go, this isn't too bad… so I deem it safe for fluff-lovers. You might actually like a few things…;)

AU/OOC, but ties in with the canon TT and Deathstroke-universes.

This story actually touches on wishes from several people, and not only for X-mas… ;)

* * *

**The Other Way Around **

You all know me, and my story. You know how the mob boss Anthony Zucco killed my parents, how Bruce took me in and I became Robin, his partner. Hah. You know _nothing_.

I think it all started when we tracked down Zucco. We found him just as he was making a deal with some other boss, receiving a briefcase. I was still very new on the job back then, and Batman told me to stay back, while he swooped in. In the fight the briefcase cracked open and money was pouring out like feathers from a torn pillow. Hundred dollar bills. Lots and lots of them. The wind in the alley picked them up and blew one of them all the way up to my hiding spot. I pocketed it. What? Wouldn't you? Anyway, anyone would have been excited about seeing all that cash, right, but it was later, when I found out that Zucco had gotten them to take out a third mob boss, that I started thinking… all that money… to kill someone, sure, but it wasn't like you _knew_ the guy, right? It wouldn't matter to you one bit, besides, who needed mob-bosses, anyway? Scum of the earth. They were practically begging for it. It was a job needing doing and hey… it was apparently very well paid…

Oh, I can hear you now, going on about that I couldn't possibly be wanting for anything, living with a millionaire and stuff, and yeah, you're right. I had everything I needed. Every _thing. _I had clothes in my closet, food on the table, and toys and stuff if I wanted them. But no money. Nothing to buy things for myself, and, after all, cash is king. I know they were generous, but I felt like a guest… me and my folks were poor, but I worked as hard as they did, helping us get by, and suddenly I was just supposed to… _be_? It was a good thing I had my Robin-persona or I would have gone crazy.

A few years went by. Even though I was tempted, I wasn't stupid… I knew Bruce had a lot to teach me, so I let him. I did do a few things he didn't know about, got to know a few people, but I never wore my Robin uniform then, of course, just simple black clothes and a ski-mask… nothing extravagant, I didn't want to draw too much attention to myself…

Then something happened. Two-Face beat the crap out of me. Yeah, I know, pathetic, but he caught me by surprise as I was trying to rescue some guy on a mission, and Batman, who was tied up at the time, got first row seats. It all ended well, though, and, actually, better than well, because the whole thing had scared old Bats senseless, and I found a way out. He didn't want me to be Robin anymore, and I pretended that I didn't want to be either. I said I wanted to study. Abroad. And I did… for a term or two… and then I took off. I kept in contact enough so that he wouldn't send the JL after me, but I never told him where I really was or what I was doing… He thought I had gone with a professor on an archeological dig in China, for example, when I was really in Berlin, killing of a politician. I had become a mercenary, and, before I was seventeen, I was a pro.

I used, and am still using, a black suit with a red bird-design and an eye-mask similar to my Robin-one but it looks… well… sharper… more dangerous. And I'm still calling myself Robin… maybe that is to be a bit too cocky, but, hey, it's not like the little boy wonder has dibs on the name, right? It's quite common…

I traveled the world, which helped my double life, because I could actually send authentic postcards and letters to Gotham when I stopped over at some airport. I'm not dumb enough to send them from places where I was doing a job, of course… Bruce accepted all this. He knew I had adventure in my blood, and the need to see the world as well. I think he was jealous, because he hadn't had the chance to enjoy himself as much at my age… well, that's what letting yourself being eaten up by revenge will get you…

I had just turned seventeen when I realized that I was getting a bit bored. I always stayed under the radar, my jobs were always done neatly and quickly, and, maybe because of this, there wasn't quite enough excitement. Besides, it was lonely at the top. Not that I didn't hook up. I did. I lost my virginity in a back alley in Rome when I was fifteen, shortly after I left Gotham. He was older than me and it was great. Then I killed him. No, I'm not some sort of psycho black-widow-type, but he just happened to be my target. And he was very good looking (come on, he was Italian!) and… well… but he died with a smile on his lips, so I'm not feeling too guilty…

I found myself attracted to the older, mature, guys… father-issues, probably. I liked it rougher too, and I don't need any Freud to tell me that I, deep down, felt some need to be punished. Hey, what can I say? I'm not perfect… damn close, though… damn close…

Anyway, I'm getting to the good stuff… I was back in the US, traveling down the East Coast, when I stopped in this pretty, bright city called Jump. I didn't have a job, I was just kicking back, and then I saw him. Well. _Them_. But mostly him.

Slade Wilson. Oh, I know everything about him now… How he joined the army at sixteen to fight for his country, an honest-to-god patriot, would you believe it? He would do anything to 'keep America free' or whatever crap they were fighting for back then… well, anyway, when the army asked if he wanted to take part of some tests to help improve the soldiers, the idiot said yes. It almost killed him. It didn't, though, but he got a little crazy for a while. On the plus side he gained healing powers and reflexes to die for. Well. _Kill_ for, anyway. Still, the army didn't like the crazy bit, so they dropped him. Just like that. Let me tell you, I would have been pissed off like hell! I mean, here he had given most of his life to those bastards and then they_ fire_ him? Sheesh, if it had been me, I would have made them play hide and seek for their spleens… Not Slade though. Oh no. He had a family then, a wife and two little boys. Family man, and devoted to a fault… he used his new found powers to help rescue kidnapped kids and stuff like that. You all-American goody two-shoes! Then life kicked him in the nuts again, and both his wife and his kids all died within a few years. And no, I didn't have anything to do with it, I think I was still in diapers back then… So… what did he do? He soldiered on! Yes, he got the one's responsible but he put them in jail… in JAIL… I would have put them in cement boots, but that's just me. Anyway, he was alone for quite a while after that… a few women here and there… noting special. Then he ran into this little group of meta-humans and, somehow, ended up as their leader! I don't know what it was… maybe he wanted a second changes to protect his kids or something sappy like that… but here they were, in Jump City: the Titans.

They did a good job, I had to admit. That goth-chick was quite scary… I wouldn't want to be around when her powers whacked out. They would, sooner or later. I knew the type. I still couldn't quite believe a man like Slade was part of a team, though. He wasn't a team-person! It was so clear from the way he was fighting; he outshone the others completely. He was special. He was… intriguing. Back then I didn't know anything about him, though, but over the next few weeks I found out everything I just told you, including how he looked like under that mask of his. His look, the white hair and the eye patch, as well as the short beard, was a bit of a surprise… I mean, I had grown up surrounded by JL-members and they mostly looked a bit more clean-cut than Slade did, but hey, the rough look was just a plus.

Usually, when a city was protected by a superhero-team like that, I stayed well under the radar, and as a rule I got out of there as quickly as I could… but Slade made me stick around…

He spotted me eventually. There was no avoiding it; the man had the eye of a hunter. As I didn't provoke anyone though, he didn't confront me. I knew by the way he tensed that he could _sense_ that I was trouble, but he didn't follow up on that instinct… such a mistake…

We fought once when he called out for me to stop and I didn't. I think he actually fell in love with me a bit when I hit him in the face. He had his mask on, so it hurt me more than him, but it was clear that he didn't expect anyone to ever be able to. I was. After that I had his full attention; he actually seemed obsessed with me, but I underestimated _how_ obsessed. Well. Two could play that game.

* * *

"Stop! Stay where you are!"

I sighed. Always with the 'stop'… and all I wanted to was 'go'… I spun around to face him, and, discovering that he was alone, I straightened up and decided to wait like a good boy. I was ready.

"Hello, handsome… does your team know you're out this late?" I smirked.

"Robin."

_Shit!_ He knew my name! What _else_ did he know? And _damn _the way he said it made me half hard!

"Slade…" I drawled back.

"Will you come quietly?"

"I _never _come quietly!" I grinned. "I'm actually a bit of a screamer…"

I could see the man's eye widen and then narrow. Did I embarrass him? Well, he was annoyed now… good, because I needed him to lose his head a bit to get away with my plan,

"I tracked your steps, Robin… I didn't like what I found. I have to take you down."

"Oh… likewise…" I grinned and attacked. He expected my fist, not the hidden darts in the fingertips of my glove.

A normal sedation-dart would have done close to nothing to the man, but I had worked with Batman, and, let's say, _borrowed_ some things and ideas from him. This particular concoction could knock out a whole herd of elephants, and, as soon as he was down, I gave him a second dose. After that, it was just a lot of work getting him 'home'.

* * *

I watched him wake up. I had placed him on a mattress on the floor. Everything was prepared beforehand, especially the chains and the metal hoops in the floor and walls. I knew the man was strong, but he was no Superman. He couldn't snap metal, unless it was weak or he had some kind of leverage… I had made sure that everything was 'Slade-safe'. I hoped.

I knew he was awake from the very slight change in his breathing. He was a smart man, though, and carefully tested his bonds before giving away that he was conscious.

"Just open your eye, handsome…" I purred. "Don't be afraid…"

The man snorted, which was pretty brave when waking up in chains and half naked. Oh, did I forget to tell you about that? I had stripped him to his underwear, because I didn't want him to get help from any nasty surprises he might have hidden away in his outfit. Oh, and I just _wanted_ to strip him. Come on, you would have done the same thing, given half a chance!

"What do you want?" he snarled. I had taken his mask off too of course, and I loved seeing that snarl on his face. I wondered what other kind of expressions I could make him do?

"Oh… nothing much…" I grinned. "Don't worry, handsome, I won't hurt you…" I slid my hand down his chest and stomach, only to rest it right on his groin. "Oh, but it might be the other way around… hmmm… you don't have a whole sock-drawer down there, do you?"

This bothered him, I could tell, but not in the fun way.

"What are you doing? Robin-!"

I sighed.

"I've tied you up and gotten you half naked… can't you tell I like you?"

"This is an unusual way of showing it…" the man muttered.

"Well, I'm an unusual young man…" I smirked.

"What happened to you?"

I blinked. Not the question or the reaction I had anticipated.

"Excuse me?"

"I have tracked you, as much as I can. You are very good. A skilled assassin and you can't be over eighteen…"

"Just turned seventeen a few months back, actually…" I beamed. "And thanks!"

"I didn't mean it as a compliment. I've seen it before. Young people at a crossroad, choosing the wrong path. You can still change, Robin. I could help you become the man you were supposed to be. Become _better_."

"Just because I don't like to play the hero, doesn't mean I don't know_ how_…"

"Listen, boy, you-"

"Nope! Bored of talking about me… I wanna talk about _you_!" I interrupted him and straddled his waist to get his full attention. I never wanted to talk about me, and from the look in Slade's eye, I just knew he could look through all my bullshitting which you people have been gobbling up for the last few pages. Slade wouldn't let me get away with that. He would ask questions. The _right_ ones. And I didn't want to even _think_ of the answers. Instead I settled over his hot body and studied him contemplatively. "I could say the same things about you, you know…" I started. "What are you doing here, Slade? Why are you here, playing with those children? Or maybe you like them young, huh? Do they all call you 'daddy' at night?"

"What is this about? Trying to shock me? You have to try harder than that…" the man growled.

"Oh, I will… So no nasty business going on in that odd Tower of yours, then? Pity. Well…" I played a bit with the hairs on his chest. He had just the right amount too… manly without being all furry. I liked it. "I think you are wasting your time, Slade. Your skills, your potential, you would be the perfect assassin… instead you are hanging around with your worthless little friends… and you're not even getting any?"

"I'm not that kind of man. Trust me, I've been there, at those crossroads, many times. I know how not to get lost."

"Damn, you're sounding like a preacher or something, get off it…" I snorted. "I know you, Slade. I've watched you. You need something more… the thrill… all I'm saying is that I can give it to you."

"Not interested."

I sighed again.

"I didn't expect you would be. Now, I could have threatened the Titans or something, I suppose, but making you do things against your will? Well, that won't work out in the long run… besides, I'd rather not have the whole JLA on my ass… well… not the females... and not in that way…" I added thoughtfully.

"If you let me live you know you will have…" the man threatened.

I blinked down at him.

"You are not very good at being the prisoner, right? Because you're supposed to say things like 'oh, if you let me go, I promise I won't say _anything_!'. You're not supposed to give me a damn good reason to kill you."

"You're not going to kill m-"

"Shh!" I hurriedly slapped my hand over his mouth. "Don't say it, because it will make me wanna do it… I'm a bit strange like that… and as I said, I didn't plan on hurting you…"

"What _do_ you plan to do? Bore me?"

"Nnnooo… hopefully not… but you know the thing about making you do things against your will? There might be a little of that… Just hang on a little…"

I climbed off and went to fetch a small tripod, on which I mounted a video-camera. I saw the man's brow furrow with confusion as I made sure it was aimed at his delectably muscled body. I rearranged some pillows to hide the chains, although, if someone would watch it, sooner or later it would probably be obvious that the man was held down by something.

"Do you film your kills?"

"I told you, I won't hurt you!" I snorted, irritated that he hadn't believed me. I might seem a bit… unhinged, but I still had my morals. Maybe not the same kind most people did, but at least a code of sorts. I slowly started to undress while I spoke to him again. "But, when I let you go, I will be leaving with the evidence of Slade Wilson, all American hero, fucking an underage boy."

"I will do nothing of the sort!" he snorted, his eye piercing me.

"You, handsome, won't have a choice…" I grinned and, now naked, resumed my place on top of him, but straddled his knees now, so I could reach everything I wanted to. His arms were chained above his head, and his legs were kept only very slightly parted by a bar between his ankles and then secured to the stone floor. Nothing else was chained down, risky, I know, but I _wanted_ him to be able to move a bit… to be able to buck…

"You think I have no control of myself?" the man sneered and looked oh-so-confident. I smiled brightly back.

"I hope you do… so I can keep you longer. Unfortunately, while you were unconscious, I injected you with a rather strong performance drug… all it needs a little… tingle… and it will do the rest."

He strained openly against the chains then, not worried, exactly, but angry.

"When I get free…"

"You'll do what? Lecture me? Slap my wrist? You're a good guy, Slade, remember? I bet you wished you weren't… don't you ever feel the need to let go? I know you have it inside you, I know you can be ruthless… why hold yourself back? Why pretend to be something you're not?" While I was talking I was sliding my hands up and down his body, avoiding the white briefs for now. Sheesh, the guy couldn't even put on a pair of decent bad-boy underwear? Maybe I should send him some after this was over… as a little thank you…

The man was seething now. I bet his dear Titans never teased him like this. Poor guy.

"Remember the crossroads, boy? It takes a stronger man to make the right choice."

"Yes… or a more frightened one."

Slade let out a small, rumbling laugh, which made my cock twitch in interest.

"Nothing scares me…"

"That's a good start… especially at this point…" I smirked and picked up a switchblade, flipping it open. As I let it closer to his groin, I felt the muscles in his legs twitch. _Scared of nothing, my ass…_ I didn't comment, though, I mean, it's just natural for a guy to become a little…_ tense_, when someone puts something sharp against your family jewels. I didn't as much as nick him, however; I only sliced the horrid underwear off.

"Mmmm…." I purred. I hadn't peaked before, and only now I got to see what the man had so selfishly hidden away. He was still soft, but I wasn't insulted; the guy was straight, after all… but that didn't deter me in the least; he'd like it just as much anyway… "this is nice… very nice… How long since you used it? Since you're not getting your jollies off with the kids, I mean?"

"None of your business."

"That long? Good… it will make my job so much easier…" I chuckled. "I can't wait to feel you inside me…" I happened to look up from my new favorite thing in the world to meet his eye at that moment and I saw some surprise there. "What, you didn't think you would bottom, did you? Oh, no, I would never let you have that much fun…" I grinned. "I'm the bottom here, and don't you forget it…"

Slade looked like he couldn't understand how anyone ever would want that position, and I couldn't help but snicker a little at his innocence. Well, he would see for himself that someone could enjoy it very much, I would make sure of that. But first to get the party started…

There wasn't much use in talking dirty, not to a straight man. Better get right to the point, then.

"I love your body…" I purred. "The thought of you and I together…. mmm… I would let you call the shots, you know, at least once in a while… what missions to take, how to do it…" I could tell Slade wasn't willing to talk shop, so I let my fingers speak instead. They caressed his chest, teased his nipples a little, though I didn't pinch them. Straight men can be sensitive about stuff like that, for some reason. His abs were just works of art, and, because he wasn't exactly thrilled to be here, they were taut as hell. I could hear his breath hitch as I finally indulged myself and caressed his cock. It was still flaccid, but wouldn't be for long, if I had anything to say about it.

I leaned over and took the tip in my mouth. I thought I heard a little gasp, but maybe it was just wishful thinking. It didn't take that long before the shaft started to lengthen, sliding into my throat. Slade felt it too, and he started thrashing again, almost choking me on his cock. What a sight that would have been for the forensics… I knew what it was about, though…

"Remember the drug I gave you? There's no use fighting it… I know all about your powers, Slade, and you are not immune to these things…" I told him soothingly. "If you like it, it's not your fault…" I added the last part almost apologetically. "I want you. I never met anyone like you…" I heard myself almost begging 'please like me, Slade!' and stopped. He was special, but not _that_ special! … oh, so_ that_ piece of bullshit you saw through? Good… you're getting better…

While I spoke I had continued to pump his shaft with my hand, sometimes both, and it was almost as hard as it was going to get. I had lubed them up before starting; making it all nice and slick for both me and him, and now it was time… I quickly snapped a quick-release cock-ring to the base, so he wouldn't even be able to go soft even if he wanted to. And he probably did.

"I normally like a bit more foreplay than this…" I told him as I scooted up, over his hips and then up to his stomach. "You're a big boy, though… be gentle with me?" It was awkward to get in a position where I could hold on the man's cock so I could start to lower myself on it, but I managed. Damn, it's so much easier when they are willing! The head was just prodding at my entrance when I realized something else. "You know, I've never allowed anyone to cum in me… always used rubbers… you'll be my first… mmm… damn… it's… big… AAH!"

Suddenly the man's hips bucked and I felt like I had just been raped by a train. I stared wide-eyed down at him while I tried to steady myself, not even able to move with the fat head of the man's dick lodged inside me. He smirked. That's when I knew for sure that he was the one.

"That… hurt…" I stammered. "Stay… stay still and-AAH!" He hadn't stayed still and now even more of his shaft was inside me. I breathed deeply, clutching his chest and feeling drops of cold sweat form on my neck and back. I guess I wasn't as experienced as I thought. I sure as hell wasn't ready for _him_. I didn't have much choice in the matter, though, because I couldn't get up, and more and more of the thing was pushing inside me until my butt met his thighs.

"I… I'm gonna release this now…" I said, and raising myself just enough, I snapped open the cock ring. "For the love of god feel free to get soft…"

"Sorry. Can't," the man smirked. "Guess you have to face the consequences… for once." With that he snapped his hips up so hard again that I almost bounced clear off. I made a sound between a whimper and a scream. I was really stretched too much, but, at the same time…

"Mmm… please…. again…" I moaned. Amazingly enough, he obeyed. "Oh…. god… that's…" he was really filling me up, giving my prostate the massage of a lifetime, and I started to, not forget, but _enjoy_ the pain of his girth. He continued lifting his hips and now I began slamming myself down. I clawed at his chest, leaning forwards a bit to drown in that cold but so intense stare, and then… I kissed him. I knew he could bite my lips off or something, but I couldn't help myself. I expected him to bite me, or spit in my face, but he kissed back. Maybe it really _had _been a long time since he got laid.

He, somehow, managed to dominate the kiss and I let him, melting against his body with a moan and, for a moment, everything slowed down. He slid in and out of me at a leisurely pace, and I got a glimpse of what it would be like to make love to the man. The moment didn't last, though, because when I got a nip on my bottom lip, I pulled back, thinking he might have just come to his senses again, and he punished me by resuming his hard pace once more.

I had been wanting him for too long to make it all last, and before I knew it my orgasm was crashing down on me, making me utter sounds I never had made before. It was like I had never, truly, come before in my life. I was still holding on to him when it was over, and he was still pushing up into me, while I was bouncing like a ragdoll on top of him.

"Please… please come… please… Slade… Please…" I begged. I couldn't take it much longer and I had long since lost the ability to get up on my own. I could barely feel my legs at all. I could roll to the side, perhaps, but something inside me wanted to please him, wanted him to come inside me, wanted to submit to him. I've never experienced anything like that before. I might be a bottom, almost exclusively at that, but I had never,_ ever_, been submissive.

Slade didn't seem to care what I thought I was, though. To him I was just something to fuck, for as hard and long as he damn well pleased. I couldn't believe my own body as I, a few moments later, shuddered through another climax… this was another first.

At that time Slade finally came too, with a sound between a grunt and a growl, like it bloody _hurt_ him… silly man. I finally let myself collapse on his chest and just laid there, feeling my backside pulse and the man's cock slide out of me. I clenched, making sure to keep most of his cum inside me. Oh, stop looking like that! I'm a dirty boy and I really wanted it, okay? I winced with pain when I did so, though, but it wasn't too bad. I hoped. I've never been hurt down there before, after all… I must have been lucky, or unlucky, enough to only run into guys with really small dicks…

"Get off me!" the man suddenly growled.

"I'm not garbage, you know…" I muttered and sat up.

"You're very close," the man snorted. He was not my best friend in the world right now, I could tell.

"Come on… we're not so different you and-" I tried.

"We're nothing alike!"

"Well… you can't deny liking what we just did…?" I grinned.

"That was just the drug," the man claimed.

"What drug? Oh, the one I lied about? Sorry, it was all you…" I grinned wider. "But don't feel bad, Slade. You're a man who got his cock sucked… it could only end one way…"

"Get. Off. Me."

"You really hate me right now, don't you?" I sighed. The man made a sound that almost could have been a 'duh!'. I sighed again. "I didn't want that… If I'd let you go right now, would you attack me? Beat me up? Kill me? Are you angry enough for that, Slade? You've killed before, willingly too, I know that."

"For my country."

"You can't really tell me that me taking out mob bosses and dirty politicians is a bad thing for America and the world?" I smirked.

"You'd kill anyone for enough money… you can be bought," he sneered.

"Wrong. I chose my missions. Sure, I might not always kill the really bad buys, but I never kill kids. Seldom women, but that depends, really..."

"Are you trying to convince me that you have a conscience?" he snorted.

"Sometimes," I shrugged. "You want the job? I'm telling you, you and me together…"

"No."

"But you could control me! I know it! You're the only one who can!" I admitted. "I'd listen to you… obey you..."

"Prove it. Let me go," Slade had a small smirk on his lips, like he could imagine being free and… well… doing something I wouldn't like.

"I will," I nodded solemnly. "It's just that I can imagine you getting free, flipping me over, getting on top of me, holding me down… or maybe punishing me… a spanking… no, a whipping, perhaps… using these chains to hold me against a wall and whip my ass and back until I beg for mercy… oh, I'd like that… but you won't, will you? You'll try to arrest me… like a prison-cell could hold me for long. I'd be out in a matter of hours, days at most, getting out of control again… And that would be your fault."

"Mine?" The man sounded almost amused now, and it spurred me on.

"Yes, for not joining me… not controlling me…"

"Then why don't you join _my _side, boy?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Pftt… I'm not going to be chained down to one place again… and heroes don't _solve_ crimes they _postpone_ them. If you let the bad guys live… Don't you ever want to _really_ punish them, Slade? You could do that to me, you know…"

"So I should kill you?"

Not the place I wanted his mind to go, but I shrugged.

"If you wanted me not to ever bother you again; sure… but I don't think you do… I think you like our fights. A lot. No one has ever fought you like I did… No one has ever let you _fuck_ them as I did… and you can have so much more than that, Slade… more thrills, more danger… we could have so much fun…. please say you'll think about it?"

"You already know I'll never join you. I'll never abandon the Titans." He said it so firmly that I _knew_ he was thinking about it. Call me an optimist if you want… yes, or delusional. Same thing.

I sighed and finally got off him, wincing again.

"Oh…" I said when I noticed his now soft cock. "You really did hurt me…" There was blood around the base, not much, but I had been torn a little, no question about that.

"You deserved it," the man's voice was tense, like he was fighting an urge to ask if I was alright.

"I did," I said seriously. "I know now that this was a rather bad idea, but, well, I'm… impatient. And I didn't think flowers and chocolate would work. I needed you."

"I could tell."

"I still do."

"Tough."

I chuckled under my breath as I got up to get dressed. I knew it would be harder to approach him after tonight, but I also knew, with absolute certainty, that he was worth it. Slade would be mine… or I his… whatever he wanted, as long as I didn't have to play nice with his team.

"I won't give up on you, Slade… I'll _haunt _you… haunt every dark corner of your mind until you discover what amazing places those are… I know you'll see it my way sooner or later. Or try to convert me, if you want… I'm _very_ easy to convince after sex, just a hint…"

I didn't get as much as a twitch of the lips from him, but I always knew he would be a tough customer. Some people, especially heroes, are so set in their ways. I mean, I can save people's lives, for sure, no problem, but they can't even imagine killing someone… strange… I finished dressing and found I had a small limp as I hobbled over t the camera, turned it off, and pocketed the memory-card.

"Ow… damn, suddenly this got a bit more dangerous…" I muttered, and I knew the man had heard me, although I didn't intend it. Sharp hearing was something it seems I had forgotten about. "Err… yeah, so… When I let you go, would you mind counting to one hundred before- no… didn't think so…" I said, seeing the answer in his eye. "Well, okay, I'm going to pull a sprint out, which are holding your legs to the floor, and then I'm going to drop the key to your wrist-chains by your feet, so you should be able to pick it up with your toes and get the key to your hand, no problem…" I told him. "And it will give me some time to get away," I added with a smirk as I pulled the sprint out. The man exploded. He didn't care about the key, he somehow twisted his whole body around and was suddenly kneeling and then half standing, straining against the chains around his wrist. And the chains were making a strange, creaking noise.

"Oh," the stone holding one of the attachments to the walls, cracked. "-_Shit_!" I gasped and backed away. "I…err… love you! Bye!" I spluttered and then ran like hell. I didn't stop for hours.

* * *

One week later I taped a gift to the outside of his bedroom window. It was a few pair of hand-tailored black boxer-briefs. I even had them embroidered, and, after thinking for a bit, I had decided on an sharp-edged 'S' in silver thread. I quite liked it. It looked very much like Slade.

* * *

The next time we met he beat the living crap out of me, but then his little teammates turned up and I managed to get away.

* * *

This morning I woke up in my hiding-place, finding a parcel by my pillow. It contained a bottle of lube and a note with a time and a place. God, I love him.

_The End._

* * *

A/N:** KaliAnn **wanted a story where the roles were reversed and Slade was the hero and Robin the evil, dominating villain… I've written Robin as evil before, but Slade as a true hero? Even the leader of the Titans? Well, that felt new and fresh enough to try… of course, in drabble format like this, there isn't really time to expand on how and why Robin turned bad, but that's also why I wrote it in first person… he's telling the story and he's not gonna tell you anything more than he wants… and he might even be lying… ;)

I hoped you picked up on some quotes, although they were warped in some cases… and yeah, I let Robin say a Red X line, it just fitted so well… ;)

And yes, if you go "this reminds me of that pic on dA a while back" that's right! That was for KaliAnn too, she didn't know I've already written the idea as a Christmas story… ;) But I didn't make the pic match this story, really, but it's the same theme…

EDIT: thank you to Winter Cicada who pointed out a bit of a plot-hole to me, but it's now fixed... I had forgotten about the camera being there... but I'm blaming ROBIN for forgetting, of course, after that fuck... :)


	5. 05 The Third Wheel

**SEMI-IMPORTANT MESSAGE!**

Thank you SOOOO much for all the reviews! They keep filling my mail-box and I love to read them, but I must say I have more or less given up on answering… at first I was all: "Answer ALL the reviews!" because I think you SHOULD, really, but I realize now, that during the week I just don't have the time, especially as I'm trying to follow other peoples X-mas specials as well… So please don't think I'm ungrateful if I don't answer! Every opinion, good or bad, is much appreciated, and I will always try to answer if you have a question or something like that! So thank you SO much for brightening my December… you are the snow I'm sorely missing!

**A/N: **Merry Christmas** Bacontheft **who gave me an idea I snatched up in delight.

Warnings: If you think humping should be only done in pairs, you might wanna skip this one.

Also, this is mainly PWP, and Robin is quite OOC (for no REALLY good reason), but, on the other hand, it's either that or no PWP in this story, so you have to take the good with the bad...;)

* * *

**The Third Wheel **

"Officer, I'm telling you, I was trying to _stop_ him!" Robin yelled, having lost his cool a while back.

"Right, punk, an' you're also tellin' me you're this… Robin, wassit? A superhero? But you 'aint got any ID, have you, punk?"

"This guy likes saying 'punk' a lot, doesn't he, kid?" Red X grinned.

"Shut up!" Robin hissed to the somewhat older teen, who had been unmasked by the cop. That was the only smart thing the man had done, and Robin made sure to get a good look at that lightly freckled grinning face with its glittering green eyes and fiery red longish hair."Listen, officer, I'm sorry I lost my temper. I really _am _Robin of the Teen Titans. If you would just _call_ them-"

"Yeah? So where are your little cape and your mask, then? Really, a little blue-eyed kid-"

"I'm seventeen!" Robin growled "And I'm in civilian clothes because I was just running an errand, and-"

"Now, that's enough out of you, punk! Settle down and you will soon be on your way to jail."

"Heh… ever heard of jailbait, kid?" Red X whispered in his ear.

"At least un-cuff me from this idiot!" Robin yelled, yanking on the handcuff that chained his left hand to the thief's right. This was bad. It was really bad that Red X now knew what he looked like, the thief having recognized him immediately unlike a certain pig headed cop, but if they took his finger-prints back at the station, his _real_ name might pop up, and that would be really _really_ bad.

"Not gonna happen, boy, you can't slip away like that," the cop smirked and turned around looking at the transport-van closing in.

"We'll see about that…" Robin muttered and snatched at Red X's belt. When he had designed it, he had put a hidden pocket for smoke pellets right about-

"Hey, I like the grope and everything, but I kinda have a boyfriend…" Red X chuckled.

"Want to get out of here?"

"Yeah?"

"Then shut the fuck up and do as I say…"

"Oh, _bossy_. Slade was wrong about you."

"Shut up!" Robin repeated. "On three we go. Up. One…"

"Sure… Wait? Up?"

"Three!" Robin hissed and threw down the smoke-pellet.

"You need to learn how to count, kid!" Red hissed as they scaled a fire escape.

"You need to learn how to fucking move in synch!" Robin hissed back.

"What's with the potty-mouth, Birdie?" the thief snickered. "What would your team say if they heard you?"

"I'm under a lot of pressure, okay?"

"…Said the guy under Slade… I mean, come on! Pressure? From talking to a cop for a few minutes? Hell, you wouldn't last a _day_ in my shoes…"

"You want to die?"

"Like you're gonna kill me," the thief scoffed.

"No, but that drop might. Jump!"

The sound of more sirens reached them as they were running across the rooftops, unable to cross over to those further away.

"Why the hell don't you have a jump-cord?" Robin asked with a snarl.

"Because you didn't make me one," Red pointed out.

"You could have _stolen_ one, you know!"

"Sorry… Hate to disappoint you," the redhead panted.

Running like this, chained together, was exhausting, especially as they kept pulling in different directions.

"Okay, this has gone on long enough, we'll stop here," Robin said and pulled them both into the shadows between two chimneys.

"Oh, cozy…"

"Why doesn't 'shut up' work on you? Come on, hand over your lock picks."

"Ah, and now I'm going to disappoint you again…"

"Come on! You were working, I _know_ you have them!"

"I was, yes, but remember that cop? The only reason I still have my belt is that he couldn't figure out how to open it… you should have put the lock picks in the hidden pocket too."

"I should have put duct tape in that pocket…" Robin muttered. "What, so you have nothing?"

"I resent that! But something that would get these off? No. What about you?"

"Civilian clothes, if you haven't noticed. I don't even have gum."

"You ass looks great in jeans, though."

"Oh, I feel so much better now," Robin groaned. "We have to get out of here and we are about to run out of roofs. Any ideas?"

"Yeah, actually, my boyfriend has a place near here!"

"Wonderful… Going to a thief's love nest… my night _couldn't_ have gone better… Does he at least have anything to get these off?"

"Oh, I'm pretty sure he does…" Red X grinned.

"Fine. Let's go. Don't introduce me."

"Alright, be rude, but we won't send you a Christmas card…"

"You mean you'll_ stop_, then? Finally! Although Star will be disappointed, she actually likes all the glitter…"

"What's not to like? Besides, he might not even be there, he's away a lot."

"Well, let's just say that with my luck tonight both your_ families_ will be there, decorating the tree or something…" Robin muttered.

* * *

"Does your boyfriend like that you enter his place through the roof?" Robin asked a bit later, as they were, awkwardly, climbing through a skylight.

"He doesn't like me being here at _all_," Red X said lightly.

"Excuse me?" Robin blinked.

"Oh, he'll just pout. Honey! Are you home? I brought a guest!" the other teen called out.

"You? Didn't you have enough last night?" a dark voice growled from the other room.

"Err… oops... he is here, I actually didn't think…" Red started and looked a bit nervous. Err… yeah… this is gonna get awkward…"

"Why?" Robin asked, just as a large shadow appeared in the door. The teen glanced at the stranger and paled. "Red! That's Slade!" he whispered fervently to the thief. The mercenary wasn't wearing his mask, but he had the rest of his suit on so it didn't take a detective to figure it out. The teen was momentarily stunned about the fact that he had now seen both of his major adversaries mask-less in one night. And they had seen_ him_. Also Slade's looks; the bright white hair and short beard, the black eye patch, the wide, angled face which was currently frowning, took a few seconds to digest. Then the alarms in his mid went off, pushing him out of his shock into cold, hard reality. "We have to get out of here! _Now_!" The hero jumped for the edge of the skylight, but, as Red _didn't_, Robin ended up flat on his back. "What the hell are you doing, you idiot!" the Titan hissed, trying to catch his breath.

"My thoughts exactly," the man growled and came closer. Robin heard him stop suddenly, and looked up into a, somewhat stunned, face. "Robin?"

"Err… hi?" the teen said weakly, wondering how the man had recognized him so quickly.

"Oh, great, I can skip the introductions after all!" Red X said brightly. "So, honey, we're in a bit of a jam here…" he added and lifted his arm, making sure that Slade saw what the problem was.

"S-Slade's your _boyfriend_?"Robin gaped.

"Yes!"

"No," the 'boyfriend' himself barked.

"All right, all right … we're like... fuck buddies. Friends with benefits!" the thief amended.

"If you take the buddy and friend part out of it…" the man muttered.

"Listen, just find me a hairpin or a bolt cutter or something, and I'll leave you two to figure things out on your own, okay?" Robin suggested.

"Nah, hang around for a bit… Slade's a sweetie, really… he might have cookies!" Red X said.

"Red, you don't think you might be just a_ little _bit in trouble here?" the hero groaned.

"He is," Slade nodded and then locked eyes with Robin. "You both are."

The hero got to his feet.

"Come on, Red, there's two of us, we can take him!" he growled, only half believing it himself.

"Two? I won't fight my lover," Red snorted and tried, unsuccessfully, to cross his arms. "He won't fuck me when he's pissed at me."

"So you never get laid then?" Robin snorted, "Because I can't imagine anyone _not_ being pissed at you. _Ever_."

"I have a very forgiving soul…" Slade smirked.

"Hey, maybe we should show Robin what we did last night?" Red suggested, and, to the hero's surprise and dismay walked over to the man, dragging Robin behind with him, and pressed himself to the Slade's front. "I'll do all the naughty things I was too tired to do yesterday…"

"No! Not before you kill me!" Robin gasped, his eyes wide with terror.

"Hmmm… very tempting…" Slade purred, although what part of it, the sex or the killing, was rather unclear.

"It is, isn't it?" Red grinned. "Let me get you comfortable…" The thief started to undress the man, getting rid of his armor piece by piece. While he did so, Robin was pulled along for the ride, getting much too close to his enemy in the process.

"Come on! Joke's over!" the teen objected desperately. "Stop it!"

"Oh, don't be a mood-killer, this isn't even about you!" Red snorted.

"Excuse me, I'm _right here_!" Robin yelled back.

"Then enjoy the show…" the redhead shrugged. "It's not like we're asking you to be a part of it. I wouldn't want some blundering virgin wrecking everything."

"Blundering-?" Robin spluttered. "Just because I don't want to have to watch you two doing… gay stuff!"

"Yeah, yeah, talk about that Egyptian river…" the thief smirked.

"Maybe we should have mercy and blindfold him?" Slade suggested. "Or at least use one of the gags… Robin with a nice red ball gag in his mouth… I could use _that_ for a Christmas card…"

"Don't you dare!" the teen snarled.

"Yes, listen to him, he _wants_ to watch…" Red snickered. "Well, kid, it's time you got an eyeful…"

Robin would never, ever have looked, he tried to tell himself, but it all happened so quickly. One moment Slade was fairly decent, apart from his top now being gone, and the next… the next everything turned very National Geographic. A photo shoot from the tribe of Very-lucky-women… or, in this case, thieves. Apparently. While Robin was not staring, Slade was ripping Red's shirt off, tearing it so the teen could get out of it even with the cuffs.

"I think we'll move this into the bedroom," Slade purred, pulling the redhead against himself.

"No! No! Not the bedroom! Not the bedroom!" Robin yelled, but, with two against one, he didn't have a chance in hell, even though he dug his heels in.

Red threw himself on top of the bed, landing on his back, and this, of course, made Robin stumble forwards. The hero ended up landing more or less on top of the other teen, who chuckled.

"Getting into it, aren't you kid?"

"Move over, that's my spot," Slade told the dazed Titan and smacked his ass. "Oh, that's nice, maybe you should stay as you are…"

That comment made Robin move faster than the Flash with the runs. He landed on his back, next to Red, who was getting his jeans pulled off.

"Stop undressing! I don't want to have sex with you!" Robin tried again.

"Well, you're_ not_, you know?" Red smirked. "Trust me, you'd _notice_ that…"

"I _demand_-eeep!" Slade, still very naked, had moved on top of Robin instead and grabbed his throat.

"Listen carefully, little bird… once I'm this far gone, I do_ not_ like to be interrupted. If I am, I get… _cranky_… and you _don't _want that. You want me happy and _satisfied_, trust me. So are you going to be a good,_ quiet_ little voyeur?"

"…es…" the teen gasped.

"That a boy. Make sure to watch, you might learn something..." Slade smirked and then moved back to Red. "Where were we?"

"Here somewhere…" the thief said and wound his arms around the man's neck, leading to Robin's hand came up to rest on the man's shoulder. Robin tried to pull away as the other two started kissing. It wasn't those nice kind of movie-kisses either. There were tongues… and teeth… and saliva… and _noises_…

Red started caressing the man's back now, pulling Robin along even more.

"Hey!" the hero started.

"What did I tell you?" Slade barked, his head snapping up and pinning Robin with a very, very scary look in the cold grey-blue eye.

"I…. I…" the Titan mumbled, and swallowed loudly. He could fight the man, one-on-one, he could yell, threaten, even _mock_ him…. but _not when Slade was naked_! Naked Slade was like Robin-Kryptonite and the teen found himself unable to do anything but stare wide-eyed like a small animal at an oncoming truck. A naked truck. Scary. "I'll…. quiet?" he eventually got out.

"That's right. Good boy," Slade nodded, "Now… about my _bad_ boy, then…" he turned his attention back to Red, who was very eager for it by now.

They were kissing again, Robin saw. And rubbing against each other. Then Slade started to move down, biting and sucking on Red's nipples for a while, which made the thief moan even louder. The man moved further down then and Robin had read enough dirty stories online to know what was next. He'd read some gay-stories too. It had been an accident, really… he hadn't known what m/m meant… it had taken him a few 'accidental' reads to figure it out.

Robin still had trouble looking away, but when the man got closer to his goal the hero managed to tear his eyes away with a strangled sound. He looked at the room instead and tried to focus on that. The flat looked dated, but not trashed. The wallpaper was probably from the eighties and the linoleum floor was… linoleum. Pretty much said it all, really. Still, it was tidy, though it was hard for it not to be with only a bed and a bedside table for furniture. One wall had built in wardrobes too and, god, did Red _have _to make that noise! Robin meant to throw the thief an irritated glance, but his eyes got stuck on Slade instead, as the teen's shaft slid in and out of his mouth. The man was looking straight at him, and smirked around his mouthful.

"Oh… Slade... s-stop… or… mmm…" Red groaned and the man pulled back. "Wanna do you now... come up here…" the redhead continued, and, to Robin's terror, the man did, kneeling between them, giving Robin an eyeful.

"Mmm… I love your cock…" Red said and turned on his side, yanking on the Titan's arm once again. The black-haired teen began to consider the possibility of just cutting his hand off. That would probably be less painful than this. Robin was flat on his back, staring up into the ceiling as Red X did lewd and _loud _things to the mercenaries cock with his tongue. The Titan was trying to hum loudly in his head, knowing that doing it out loud would probably be one of those distracting things Slade didn't like. Now and again his arm was tugged, but the teen just let it happen, staring fixedly at as speck of dust or something above him. Suddenly, however, his arm was moved more than usual, and his hand was brushing, no _pressed_, against something warm. Robin turned his head to the side so fast his neck almost snapped, and then, with a yell, snatched his arm back.

"You fuck-!" Red X had had him _fondle Slade_!

This time the man grabbed his neck and pulled him towards the snickering thief. The teen fought until the grip tightened so much his body gave in from the pain.

"Robin, Robin, Robin… say you're sorry…" Slade purred. The man's erection was actually touching the teen's jaw, more or less by coincidence.

"...won't… you… bast… aarrhhhg…"

"You will. Now."

"Come on, kid, you know you wanted to cup a feel!" the redhead claimed.

"… did… _NOT_…" Robin gasped.

"Oh, and why are you hard, then? And I bet you are practically leaking through your jeans!"

Humiliated, the teen had to admit that it was true. That didn't stop him from sending a death glare in the redhead's direction however.

"Still waiting for that apology, pretty bird…" Red reminded him.

"… go… to… hell… AAH! Fuck!"

Slade had tightened his grip even more.

"Apologize," the man ordered.

White and black pots were swimming before Robin's eyes by now and he had lost all feeling in his arm.

"Kay! Kay… s… sorry…" he groaned.

"I forgive you!" Red said lightly and pressed his lips to Robin's. Slade let go, but it took a few moments before Robin found the strength to pull away with a wordless growl.

"Aw, didn't you like it? I thought you wanted to know what Slade tasted like!" the thief grinned and started to lick his favorite, meaty, candy again.

Stunned, Robin touched his lips. He had wondered at the salty flavor.

"I'm going to kill you!" he yelled and threw himself at the redhead, almost knocking him off the bed before Slade could grab him again.

"That's_ it_," the man growled and pushed Robin down on his back, shoved Red X on top of him, front to front, and held them both there. "Red, unless you can control him, until I am finished, you will both be sorry… the kind of sorry you don't recover from," the man hissed. "Hold him down."

"Did you hear that, kid?" Red asked lightly, "Sorry about this. I'm not the manhandling type, you know, but we better stay put, okay?"

"…still gonna kill you…" Robin muttered, but was unable to move. Slade had helped Red to get a good grip on his wrists, and the teen had all his weight on him. Red's knees was between his legs, and Robin could possibly try to kick something, but the something he might hit might very well be Slade, and that… well, that didn't bear thinking about.

Slade got up from the bed and rummaged around in the night-stand for a bit before returning with a tube. As he positioned himself behind Red, who spread his knees, making Robin's legs spread even wider too, the hero couldn't see what he was up to. Neither could Red X, of course, but the teen seemed eager.

"You know what, Robin?" the thief said, "You can pretend Slade's fucking you, if you want to… talk about test ride… Oh… oh, and… now is… the time… when…. you… should… say… OH MY GOD!" Red's groin was pushed forwards, pushing hard against Robin's.

"Oh my god…" the hero groaned, not even noticing that he was playing right into the redhead's hands. The feeling of the other's groin against his was just too much.

"Yeah… just… like that, kid…" the other chuckled. MMhh… yeah… just… like _that_…."

Robin stared helplessly up at Slade over Red's shoulder. He could feel every thrust, every snap of the man's hips, and, as the man met his eyes he smirked and started to fuck the thief harder.

Robin and Red groaned as one, both in a pain-mixed pleasure-haze. Robin groaned again, and lifted his hips a little. He really couldn't focus on how much he hated Red, and Slade, come to think of it, when he was so deliciously uncomfortable… his jeans were just too damn tight! For once in his life Red X seemed to realize how someone else was feeling.

"I'm gonna help you out, kay?" he whispered harshly, and, letting go of one of Robin's wrists he lifted himself up enough to snap open the button or Robins' jeans and undo the zipper. The Titan gasped in relief a moment later as his trousers were pushed down enough to let his member free.

"Th… thank… god…" Robin panted. The friction against Red was even more intimate now, but also a hundred times better.

"Mm…" Red murmured and buried his face against the other teen's neck, lapping and kissing. The black haired teen no longer much cared if he was being held down or not, he simply let the thief do whatever he damn well pleased.

What pleased Red was to tear Robin's shirt open, not a difficult task since the buttons were of the snap-fastener kind, and now their naked chests rubbed together as well.

Fingers teasing and tweaking his nipples drove Robin wild and his now free hands grabbed Red's hair, drawing him down for a kiss. He might not_ like_ the guy very much but, right now, he needed to kiss someone. None of the glands involved with his actions right now were connected to any sensible part of his brain, and Robin liked it. He liked it very much.

"Faster… fuck him faster…" he gasped at Slade.

"Hey, it's _my_ ass!" Red groaned.

"I think he talks sense, though," Slade chuckled and sped up.

"He can set the pace when it's _his_ ass!" the thief suggested.

"Shut up…" Robin growled and grabbed the other teen's neck again, making sure he obeyed by kissing him.

The friction and also the sounds of the others drove Robin towards his climax and the next second he was yelling out, bucking even harder under Red's weight. The thief wasn't far behind, and, judging by a grunt and a change of pace, Slade was about to come too.

Robin was breathing heavily, his eyes closed, when he felt Red rolling off him, to his left, and a heavier, bigger body settle to his right. It occurred to the hero's sluggish mind that being sandwiched between two enemies might not be a very good thing, but right now he couldn't find the energy to do anything about it other than to turn on his side a bit, facing Red X. Facing Slade would be… no… But this position, especially as the man moved closer, was not such a good idea either. He kept his eyes closed hoping that would save him from having to say anything. Things were embarrassing enough as they were.

A hand on his hip startled him but he tried to stay still, faking sleep. The hand, Slade's, moved forward over his stomach, leisurely, just tracing its way through the puddles of cum there. His _and_ Red's, Robin realized. When it went back up to his hip again, and down his thigh, Robin realized something else. He was naked. He had forgotten about his fly being opened, and his jeans pushed down, and now they were mid thigh, being completely useless.

The man moved behind him, coming closer, and Robin suddenly failed to keep up his pretend sleep anymore as something hot and slick poked his ass.

The hero would never admit to yelping, although Slade and Red would certainly describe the sound that way. His eyes snapped open and he found himself staring straight into Red's laughing ones.

"I should have warned you… I usually get the hell out of here quickly after a fuck, because Slade refractory period is like… three seconds."

Although slightly impressed that the thief knew a big word like that, Robin was still mostly frozen in panic-mode. He could feel the large shaft sliding in and out between his buttocks, nudging his balls now and then, and he had no idea what to do.

"Okay… err… yeah… funny…." he started. "Just get these off now!" he pulled on the handcuffs.

"I'd rather get this off…" Red grinned and slid down Robin's front until he could lick the head of the hero's awakening cock.

"No, I don't think- Oh! Oh-my-god…" Robin gasped. He had imagined that a blow job must feel good, but _this_ good…? He couldn't even object as the thief pulled his jeans all the way off.

"I think we call the shots now, Robin…" Slade purred in his ear. "And what you will do is lift your upper leg and place it around Red's shoulder. Good boy."

The teen had obeyed without even noticing, and suddenly the area between his cheeks also got a lot slicker, making him jump. Slade's hand was back on his hip and tightened.

"Now, don't try to fly away, little bird… it's only fair to Red, you know, that you should help please me."

Robin, of course, should have raged at that, fought, kicked , scratched, hell, he should have taken Red, swung him by his arm, and used him as a weapon to beat the man bloody, but… he couldn't even curse. The tip of Slade's cock was still gliding along his crack, finding, and pressing, against his opening with every stroke. A little harder each time, but not painfully so. In fact, after a few times, Robin started to push back. It was like Slade's cock was reaching for an itch, but instead of scratching it, he only teased it.

Red was teasing too, making sure Robin was kept aroused enough to not exactly know what he was doing, but still safely away from climaxing.

The tip of the cock was almost inside him now, Robin could feel it. It was a moment from breaching him and then Slade pulled back. That was more that the teen could take, and he growled, reaching back behind him, grabbed Slade's hip and pulled the man towards him. The man got the message, and, on the next thrust, the teen hero cried out as the cock buried itself inside him.

"God… no… no too big! Too big! Take it out!" Robin groaned.

To his utter amazement, Slade, carefully, did. Then he slammed it back in again. It should have hurt worse, but strangely, it didn't. Robin's muscles had had a moment to relax, though their owner wasn't quite there yet.

"You- ug!" Robin had started to actually say something, at least, but then Slade's hand moved, pushing his fingers into the teen's mouth. His cum-soaked fingers.

"Don't say anything you'll regret. Remember who's fucking who here…" the man purred in his ear. "Now suck my fingers clean and think about how you should act…"

Robin didn't dare bite and did as the man told him. He heard, and felt, Red X chuckle around his cock, making the world a much better place. In fact, the complete full feeling in his behind was not so bad either… he pushed his hips back a little, just to see if it would hurt, and more of the man's shaft slid smoothly into him. The man pulled his fingers out and placed his hand on Robin's hip again, patting it appreciatively.

"You feel so good, Robin…" the man purred again, and the teen felt hot lips close around his earlobe and suck gently.

"Ah!" Robin gasped at the completely alien sensation, which sent arrows of pleasure from the base of his skull, all the way down his spine. "Mm… yes…. please a-again…"

He got a small nibble on his ear and a snap of the man's hips, and cried out in pleasure once more.

"And polite too… you might become my favorite if you play your cards right…" the man chuckled, again just resting inside the Titan.

"I thought… you were… gonna… kill me…" Robin murmured, only half joking.

"A fuck as good as you? No. Not if you agree to join us again…"

"Okay…" Robin said meekly.

"You know what?" Red said, taking a break. "That's exactly how he got me too…"

* * *

An hour later Robin and Red was more or less snuggling on the bed while Slade had left the room to get something to remove the cuffs with.

"Hey…" Robin said lazily, "What did you mean back at the crime-scene when you said Slade was wrong about me?"

"What? Oh, that… nah, he was right, actually, I see that now…"

"And? About what?" Robin asked, a bit annoyed.

"Well, I thought you were bossy, but Slade once said that you were the perfect sub… you just needed someone to show you your place… and judging by tonight… he was right, wasn't he?" the thief snickered.

"I actually found a bolt-cutter in the storage…" Slade said and walked in, dressed only in jeans. He looked up and then stopped. "I realize that we are not the best of friends here, but Red, whatever you have just said… you'll pay for it."

"What?" the thief exclaimed innocently.

"By my calculations Robin should not have lost the 'recently thoroughly fucked' look yet, but instead he's glaring at me, making _me_ feel fucked… You told him, didn't you, you idiot?"

"Yes he did," Robin growled.

"Well, I guess you would have found out tomorrow, anyway," the man shrugged. Red was shaking his head feverishly, mouthing 'NO-NO-NO', but Slade ignored him. "I have a feeling you would have tried to find that officer… But you have to agree… it was a nice set-up, wasn't it?"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Hope you enjoyed!


	6. 06 Deal

A/N: Merry Christmas **Sabaku No Ko-chan!**

This is a topic I've visited before, but I've never dedicated a whole drabble to it, I don't think… and It deserves that…

Genre/warnings: a fairly canon "What If?". Bit of angst but should be safe. This is one of the dark stories that is more of "serious" than dark… and it's not even very serious… but the THEME is… it's all in the theme… It can even be a bit sweet, actually. If you squint.

* * *

**Deal**

Raven opened the door for the man, letting him into Titan's Tower.

"Thank you for coming… we didn't know who else to turn to…" she said quietly. Starfire, Beast Boy and Cyborg all stood behind her, looking drawn and, where possible, pale.

"Why not Batman?" Slade asked dryly.

"We thought about it, dude, but…" Beast Boy started.

Slade raised an eyebrow at being called 'dude', but, of course, no one could see that as he was wearing his mask.

"Where is he?"

"In the gym. He hasn't left for two days."

"Not even to go to the bathroom?" the man prodded, knowing that teens tended to exaggerate. If Robin hadn't 'left for two days' it might just as well mean that he'd been in there an hour.

"There's a connecting bathroom and shower," Raven answered.

"Are there security cameras?"

"He smashed 'em all," Cyborg told him, a slight disapproval in his voice.

"Then how do you know he's still alive?"

"I can feel his aura," the empath answered quietly.

"I see. Why not go in there and get him, then?" Slade, even though he knew the reason for Robin's behavior, didn't quite understand why the Titans thought _he_ could 'fix' it.

"He has locked the door so it will not open," Starfire said with a small voice. "I have asked and asked, but he will not…"

"Yes, I can see how a locked door have you stumped, seeing as one of you can morph through walls, two of you should be strong enough to break_ through_ the door, and the other one can go in as a t-rex or a mouse through the vents…" the mercenary said, sounding rather pissed.

The Titans looked at each other and squirmed.

"Well…." Cyborg started. "Raven can't morph through the walls because we've proofed places like gyms and bathrooms where people might want privacy…"

"Oh?" Slade said, suddenly interested. "How?"

"Like we would tell you!" Beast Boy snorted.

"I'll find out later…" the man shrugged. "Break the door down, then."

"The gym was designed to withstand our powers… we need to use them when training, after all, without risking trashing the place…."

"So… animal-boy… what's your excuse?" Slade asked.

"I… well, I… the vents aren't that big and… I… I just don't know what to say to him, okay!" the young teen burst out.

"BB is the youngest; he can't be expected to deal with something like this…" Raven said and placed her hands protectively on the short boy's shoulders.

"I have a feeling you're all cowards," Slade snorted. "No matter. Lead me to him."

A few minutes later they arrived at a locked steel door with the sign 'GYM 1' on it.

"He didn't wreck the lock but he electronically blocked it, somehow," Cyborg let Slade know. "I've tried everything and I can't even-"

"Done." Slade put back a small device into his belt and the door opened to his touch. "I don't want any of you to come in, even if you should happen to grow some balls…" the man growled.

"Please? What are these balls? How do they grow?" he heard the alien ask her teammates before the door slid shut again.

Slade turned and let his eye search the room. It might be Titan-safe but it was obviously not Robin-safe. Finally he spotted a huddled form in a corner and leisurely walked towards it.

"So, Robin… you killed someone?"

Robin's head snapped up.

"What are_ you_ doing here?"

"Your teammates seem to have me confused with Dr. Phil," Slade deadpanned.

"Go away."

"No, I promised to help. Merely out of curiosity, I admit, but still. I keep my word."

"No one can _help_! I _killed_ him! I killed Control Freak!"

"_Him_? Well, good job then. More Cheetos for the rest of us."

"Shut up!"

"Fine. Did you _mean_ to kill him?"

"No!"

"Do you feel the _need_ to, or are_ planning_ to, kill again?"

"Of course not!"

"So it was an accident and you won't do it again. This would make you unemployed if you were an assassin, but it works for heroes. Problem solved."

Slade turned away and was about to leave when he heard a sniffle. He sighed and turned back. The young man on the floor was crying like a baby, tears seeping out from under his mask.

"I'm not a 'there-there' person, Robin. Go out and cry with your friends."

"I didn't mean to…"

"Yes. You said."

"He… he had brought all these characters to life, like…. Godzilla… and vampires… and aliens, and people to…from movies and TV-shows… and… the only way to… stop them was… hitting the little…. energy cell… in their… chests… and… they were ganging up and… I used my bird-a-rangs… and… it worked… and then… someone behind me… and I threw it… and… and it was him… I … hit him… in the heart and… there was nothing… tried to… .but…" the young hero tried to talk between the sobs, making his story a bit choppy but still easily understandable.

"Yes. An _accident,"_ Slade pointed out again. "Do you think Control Freak would be at home now, sobbing like a baby, if he had succeeded in killing _you_?"

"That's not the point!" the teen tried.

"Oh, but it is, my little bird. Control Freak _tried_ to kill you; _you_ didn't try to kill _him_."

"I'm not your little bird…" the teen muttered.

"I think that is another discussion… although we can talk about that if you have finished moping."

"Moping?" Robin shot to his feet, fists clenched.

"Yes… or raging. Or is this some kind of redecoration?" Slade looked around, turning his back to the frustrated teen and glanced into the bathroom. The tiles on the wall had lots of fist-sized cracks in them. That must have hurt if you weren't a meta-human. "Ouch…" the man muttered under his breath.

"I'm not moping," a moping voice told him.

"Of course not. You are grieving the death of a good innocent friend who died bravely while trying to make the world a better place…" Slade said, irony very much present in his voice.

"It doesn't matter who he was-"

"Oh, really? So if it had been Beast Boy behind you?"

The teen paled, looking like he was going to throw up.

Slade smirked a little under his mask.

"So, I have a feeling that would be worse, am I right?"

"Y-yeah, but…" the teen didn't want to admit it; that much was clear.

"I see you want to cling to the silly little belief that all people have equal value," Slade sneered. "Stop that."

"It's not like you know how I feel!" the teen said, going for the ultimate teen-argument.

"I killed for the first time when I was sixteen. I was ordered to do it."

"You could have said no!"

"I was ordered by the army of the United States of America."

"Oh."

"Does that make my kills better, you think?" the man asked.

"Wars are wrong…" Robin mumbled unsurely.

"I agree."

"You do?" the teen seemed genially surprised by that.

"Yes. A small group or a single man or woman can do what needs to be done. Involve thousands or millions of soldiers and things… get messy."

"Yeah…" Robin had started to walk around, idly picking up thrown weights or getting a bench back in position. The floor was covered with sand from several punching bags.

"Oh, that's impressive," the man said, looking up at the opposite wall. From it a weight disc emerged, having been picked up and thrown into it with incredible force. "Did you do that?"

Robin glanced up and seemed to blush in embarrassment.

"…the camera…." he mumbled, and only then Slade saw the sad small remains of a security camera that had once been placed there.

"Now I'm even more impressed. Good hit."

"Cyborg will kill me…" the teen muttered again.

"Oh, better stop straightening up in here, then, since he'll be in here soon making a mess again…"

The teen made a little snort that might have been a laugh. Slade smirked smugly.

"They must think I went insane…" Robin sighed after being quiet for a while.

"Well, they did call _me_…" Slade pointed out.

"Yeah… why didn't they call Batman, though?"

"I asked the same thing. Maybe they thought I'd be better to talk to, since I'm in the business… Batman might have slapped your wrists and called you a bad boy."

"It's worse than that… I'm a _killer_!"

"Ouch, that hurt," Slade said and clutched his heart.

"You know what I mean!"

"Yes, but sorry to disappoint you, kid. You're not a killer. You _can_ be, with a bit of practice… I am sure you'll be very good at it-"

"I don't_ want_ to be!"

"-apart from that little thing, of course…"

"And what do you mean I'm not a killer! I killed a man! That's kinda what you have to do to be one!"

"If you define it wrong. You didn't mean to kill him._ Intent_ is everything. It wasn't even self defense, you didn't _know_ he was there, it was an _accident_. There's a reason pilots aren't normally called mass murderers after a plane goes down."

"I don't think it's the same thing."

"That's because you are a hypocrite."

"Excuse me?"

"If the same thing had happened to any of the others, would you call them murderers? I have checked the police reports, no one is even pressing charges. Some wants to give you a medal."

"I don't want a medal!"

"And you won't get one. God forbid society would do something that might urge heroes to be effective. But you avoided the question, Robin… a stray starbolt, a panicked move, magic that fails at the wrong moment… it could so easily happen. It might happen any day. Would you call your teammate a killer?"

"No, I… but I should have known better, I should have made sure… I… just reacted, I…" Robin sank down on a bench and laid back of it like he was about to do a bench press. He seemed completely drained of energy.

"Instinct," Slade looking down on the teen. "I know about that… trust me."

"Have you ever regretted a kill?" the teen asked quietly.

"Yes. Once or twice," the man admitted seriously.

"What did you do?"

"You can't bring them back to life… you can't go back in time. There's nothing to do than to go on. Focus on something else. Learn from it. I am sure, for example, that you will try to restrain your instincts now. That might unfortunately make you a poorer fighter, though, so be careful."

"Right…" the teen muttered, throwing an arm over his face. "So what do I focus on? All we do is fight crime, and that's like focusing on the problem… that won't take my mind off it."

"No it won't… but I know what will," the man purred. Before Robin had time to react Slade quickly unclasped his mask, held the teen's arm in place over his eyes, kneeled down and kissed him. Robin tensed and gasped as Slade let his tongue tease Robins' bottom lip just for a moment before pulling back, sliding his mask down again.

"There…" the man said as he left the room. "Think about_ that_."

_The End_

* * *

A/N: aww… Slade used his tongue in TWO ways to make Robin feel better… he's such a good, selfless man… -grin-


	7. 07 Block, Block, Pounce

A/N: Merry Christmas **yaoigurl12!**

Firstly, no I didn't misspell the title. It's in fact, very clever, you just don't know why yet… ;)

This is somewhat AU-ish but not disturbingly so, most major things are canon…

* * *

**Block, Block, Pounce **

The Titans, sans their leader, were gathered in front of a screen, talking to an older man with a very neat moustache.

"So, the day is finally here…" Raven said ominously.

"Yes. When I first noticed his interest I made him promise not to make a move until the boy was eighteen…" Wintergreen nodded solemnly.

"Do you think he knows that's today?" Beast Boy asked.

"He was whistling this morning."

"Oh."

"I think the party invitation Robin sent was a hint…" Raven said dryly. "Although I'm sure he would have known anyway…"

"But friends, if Slade wishes to court our Robin, shall we not let him?" Starfire piped up.

"Are you kidding, Star?" Cyborg snorted. "I love Rob, but the bro is as innocent as a newborn kitten, we can't let Slade just _maul_ him… he won't have a chance in hell!"

"But maybe he does not wish for one?" the alien smiled sweetly.

"Cy is right," Raven said. "Robin has never even _dated_, and Slade can be a bit… overwhelming. He will sweep him off his feet and Robin will do something he'll regret…"

"What thing is this?" Starfire blinked.

"Yeah, what thing, Rae?" Beast Boy grinned mischievously.

"The _point _is," Cyborg said firmly, "that even though Slade is probably a decent guy-" he glanced at the man's old friend, who nodded, "Robin needs to just… play the field a bit… we have to make sure he has a chance to do that."

"Yeah! Go Team Cock Blockers!" Beast Boy yelled.

"Great… we're calling ourselves that…?" Raven growled.

"Just callin' it what it is…" the changeling grinned. "So, you're in old man?" he asked Wintergreen.

"Yes, of course. I agree with your concerns, after all. Slade would never intentionally hurt the young man, but, as you implied, when he has his eye set on something… he tends to forget that there might be other opinions involved… like Robin's."

"So, keep him away, encourage Robin to date a bit, and then we can let him make up his mind for himself…" Raven summed it up. "Pay attention at the party tonight, folks."

"How many will be attending?" Wintergreen asked.

"Quite a lot… some of the H.I.V.E too… you know Robin, trying with that uniting-idea…"

"It's a _great _idea… I'm gonna discuss it with Jinx tonight…" Cyborg cut in with a grin.

"Good luck. Oh, and the dress code is civilian, masks optional, no weapons, but you said Slade got the invite, right?"

"Yes, we both did. He whistled that day too, I seem to recall…" Wintergreen sighed.

* * *

"Everyone seems to be having fun, don't they?" Robin asked a bit nervously. He was dressed in smart black trousers and a white, long-sleeved, clingy top. Just a little sexy, as the clothes flattered his lean but muscular body, but mostly clean cut, because he had been raised by Bruce Wayne after all. He had his mask on, of course, but most of the people around him didn't.

"Yeah man, it's a great party!" Cyborg said and then looked worried. Slade had just walked in, and had already aimed for his leader, and Cy was all alone on the defense-line. The man looked immaculate in a dark suit and white shirt with no tie, which would have looked strange in the mostly young crowd. Wintergreen, walking in behind him, had one though. The man didn't wear a mask, so the slightly hungry expression on his face when he spotted the teen hero was plain to see.

"Robin…"

The man's voice practically dripped seduction. Robin turned around and gave him a happy grin.

"Slade! Glad you could make it!"

"I was glad to be invited… oh, and happy birthday…" the man handed the teen a beautifully wrapped box.

"Wow, thanks-" Robin started.

"Yeah, thanks for coming!" Cyborg cut in. "Look Robin, the kid over there looks all alone, why don't you go over and talk to him while I take this present to the gift table and show Slade where the punch is?" the metal teen said and practically pushed Robin towards a jeans-clad hoodlum which he had no idea who he was. He was not Slade, at least.

Robin nodded, a bit bewildered, and went over to the other teen.

"Hi, I'm Robin, welcome to the tower," he started with a genuine smile.

"Been here before, kid" the teen with the rusty-red hair grinned.

"Red X? I didn't recognize you! Well… welcome… just don't steal anything, will you?" Robin smirked.

"Oh, but you've gotten so many present…" the teen grinned back. "I would have brought you something, but the store was open."

"Don't you mean closed?"

"Nope… I do all my best shopping when they're closed," Red chuckled.

Robin laughed. He had long since decided that he would have an open party where everyone was included, and that meant letting things like this slide. Actually it was nice to just be able to laugh about it, instead of putting on that serious façade he always was forced to wear on the job.

"You have a nice laugh, kid…" the thief smiled. "How about I get us something to drink?"

"I have already arranged that," Slade said from behind them. The man was carrying two glasses of some fruity, non-alcoholic of course, concoction. Suddenly Raven crashed into him from nowhere.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I tripped," the young woman claimed. "Let's go get you some towels!" she added.

"I didn't spill anything on me," Slade said dryly. "The floor, on the other hand…"

"Oh…" Raven seemed momentarily at a loss. "Then you should go get new drinks, then, aren't you thirsty, Robin?"

"… yeah, I could…" the teen started.

"See?" the empath asked the one-eyed man. "We'll be right here…"

"Of course. I'll be right back," the man nodded, his jaw clenched just a little bit.

As soon as his back was turned Raven pointed to the other side of the room.

"Robin, why don't you go and show your new friend the view?"

"Errr, Rae? This is Red X…" Robin started. "He's seen it."

"Not it this light," the woman said, ignoring the fact that it was pitch black outside, and shoved them away.

"But shouldn't we wait for Slade?" Robin asked.

"I'll tell him where you went, I'm going to stay here and clean up, okay?"

"Okay, thanks…" Robin nodded, idly wondering why his friends kept pushing him tonight. Soon he was caught up with Red's banter, however, and it picked up even more than the Titans East joined them, especially Speedy.

Raven focused her magic and willed it to gather all the moisture from the floor, and then she just deposed of it in a flower-pot. It was probably not the worst of what would end up in it tonight; she had already stopped two people from trying to spike the punch.

She then gestured for the rest of 'Team Cock Blocking' to come over.

"You see that redhead Robin's with now?"

"Yes I do. That is our friend Speedy!" Starfire proclaimed happily.

"The _other _one, Star," Raven sighed. "Anyway, he's Red X."

"What? Really?" Cyborg gaped.

"I've heard of this young man, are you sure he's suitable company for young Robin?" Wintergreen asked.

"Well, he can't be as dangerous as Slade, right? And Speedy is over there too, I know he has a soft spot for Robin… and he's not very subtle, so even Robin will get that he's flirting with him before things get too far."

"Excuse me, have you seen Robin?" Slade suddenly appeared behind them.

"Yes, I believe he was just over there," Wintergreen said and pointed the man in the completely wrong direction.

"Thank you, old friend," the man grinned and walked off.

"Now I feel guilty…" the elderly man muttered.

"Come on, it's just until this obsession lessens a little…" Cyborg comforted him.

"Yeah, it's like when Slade agreed on backing off until Robin turned eighteen, he kinda decided that this was the day, right… so if we can keep him away long enough to cool down, maybe he'll realize that it was just an obsession…"

"Or maybe he won't," Wintergreen reminded them softly.

"Yes, and we know that Slade has worked very hard to change into a more law-abiding line of work, and we all agree to support them if they both are interested," Raven said firmly, "but we want to make sure it's_ serious_…"

"I agree. Slade is not a man to take matters of the heart lightly, but he _is_ a hunter, and there's always a risk that he has confused Robin with prey," Wintergreen shrugged.

"We will not let our leader be a trophy of hunting," Starfire said firmly. "He will only be a wife of love."

"Err… Star… didn't we explain about that… there's _no wife_…" Beast Boy began.

"Of course that is so! One has to be the wife! The decorations of wedding cakes do not lie," the alien claimed.

"Come on, it's not like it's going to be a _wedding_," Cyborg chuckled.

"There… is not?" Huge green eyes filled with tears in an instant.

"Wintergreen, would you take over here?" the metal teen begged.

"Of course. Your highness, could you perhaps tell me more about the fascinating culinary delights of your home planet?" the man said and offered her his arm.

"Okay, so… Robin is safe with the others for a bit, but keep your eyes open. And check the punch…" Raven added as an afterthought.

"Hi, guys!" Robin said, just walking up to them.

"What… weren't you with Red X and the others?" Cyborg said.

"Yeah, but Red and Speedy really hit it off. Turns out they are both interested in astronomy, so they headed up to the roof for a bit," he smiled. "I never knew Speedy liked science much…"

"Note to self; clean pool tomorrow…" Cyborg muttered while Raven exchanged an eye roll with Beast Boy over their leader's gullibility.

"Never saw Slade, though?" Robin said and looked around. "I feel a bit guilty about not being a good host…"

"Baaa-dum. Baaa-dum. Ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum-ba-dum!"Beast boy suddenly started humming.

"Man, what's with the Jaw's theme?" Cyborg asked.

Raven, however, got the idea.

"Robin, the music is so great, let's dance!" she said and grabbed his arm.

"But… you don't dance?" the birthday boy claimed faintly, his eyes wide behind the mask.

"What are you talking about, I love this song!" Raven told him and dragged him away, just as a shadow appeared behind the group.

"I thought I saw Robin here a second ago?" Slade said, again with two cups of lemonade in his hands.

"Ah, I think he was heading up to the roof with Red X and Speedy… for _stargazing_…" Cyborg claimed.

Two crushed mugs hit the floor in the next moment and the door to the stairs slammed open not two seconds later.

"Well, he's… determined…" Beast Boy claimed. "Err… do you think we should tell Raven that she doesn't have to go through with the dancing now?"

"Nope," his friend grinned. "Because this I have to see…"

They only got a ten minute respite, though, because then a rather frustrated Slade came back, and a few moments later a ruffled-looking couple of redheads. Speedy was sporting a black eye.

"What happened?" Robin said, rushing towards them.

"Well… errr… nothing…" the couple was glancing at Slade, who glared threateningly back.

"Wow, you really are a beginner, aren't you?" Robin grinned "You must be careful with those telescopes! Oh, wait… did you even have one?"

"Oh, yeah, Red brought one… and extendable one…" Speedy claimed and managed to almost do it with a straight face as well.

"Okay, the night sky is really great from up there, use our roof any time, okay?" Robin offered.

"Thanks, I will… whenever Speedy's in town…" the thief smirked.

"Oh, but I could join you instead, I really enjoy astronomy!" Robin claimed.

The redheads glanced at each other, and the thief shrugged helplessly.

"Sure, kid…"

"Actually, would you mind showing me the night sky?" Slade suddenly spoke up, making his way to Robin's side.

"No, but… didn't you just come from up there?"

"I wasn't there for the stars, I'm afraid, so I didn't see any," the man claimed.

"… made damn sure I did, though…" Speedy muttered.

"Oh, well, okay I-"

"Starfire and I have just decided that it's time for the cake," Wintergreen let them all know as he walked straight into the group and managed to come to a stop right between Robin and Slade, with the alien princess still on his arm.

"Yes, cake!" Beast Boy agreed and shuffled Robin along to the table where the enormous T-tower shaped cake stood.

"Why do you keep _pushing _me?" Robin complained out loud this time, although not _very_ loudly. When your best friends bullied you at your own birthday party you didn't want people to know.

After everyone had a plate with cake there was an impromptu outburst of 'happy birthday'-singing, although not everyone stuck to the right melody, words, or even language. It still had the result that this kind of thing was meant to, though: making the birthday child thoroughly embarrassed.

After this, the music was turned up a few notches and the lights dimmed so the lightshow Cyborg and Beast Boy had worked on for almost a week could impress the party people.

All this had an upside and a downside for Team Cock Blockers: Slade couldn't easily talk to Robin anymore, but it was also harder to spot any oncoming danger.

Robin surprised most of his guest by being a really good dancer, making quite a few of them consider what else he might be good at and how to test it. Slade didn't dance, but as this was mostly sex standing up, he circled the floor trying to get closer to the teen. Robin always had his friends around him, though, along with one or five young men the mercenary wanted to put in early, shallow graves. This was not going according to plan.

Hours later, when the field had thinned quite a bit, the plan was still failing, and now Wintergreen had started yawning like an idiot.

"I'm afraid my old bones are tired, my friend…" he said. "Maybe we should head home."

"Fine…" Slade's shoulders slumped a little. "Let's go say goodbye to our host first, though."

"Of course," the old man said, trying to hide a smug expression.

As they got closer to the Titans Wintergreen walked ahead.

"We're just here to say goodbye and thank you for this wonderful party," the old man said, mostly for the Cock Blockers sake, so they would know the danger was over for this time.

"Oh, thank you both for coming!" Robin said. "I'm sorry we haven't been able to talk much, it's been a very busy night…" he said, looked a bit puzzled as he thought back on it.

"It has… full of strange coincidences…" Slade muttered. "But thank you, the night has been... interesting."

"Oh, thanks for the watch, by the way! It's amazing!" Robin said and showed his wrist where a titanium watch shimmered. "I wanted to thank when you opened the presents, but I couldn't see you."

"My fault, I'm afraid, an old war injury was acting up and Slade was kind enough to help me out of the room for a while."

"Yes… and I don't even remember you getting that particular injury…" the one-eyed man growled.

"Well, it was before we met, old chap!" Wintergreen said brightly. "Anyway, goodnight everyone. Let's go, Slade."

"Yes, of course. Just one more thing."

The man suddenly grabbed Robin, pushed him against a wall and kissed him within an inch of the teen's life, judging but the sounds.

"Slade!" Robin gasped, staring up at the man incredulously as soon as he let him breathe a little. "You… but… you… I… why… you… What the hell _took_ you so long?"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: **yaoigurl12 **gave me a short outline of a complete idea which I went to town with. It was that the Titans and Wintergreen working together to cock-block Slade from an oblivious Robin until the man gets so frustrated he just pounces. Now you see why I like the title? ;) It was the word "cock block" which really drew me to this prompt, it just had me as soon as I read it… ;) Also Batman and Alfred are not included in this story, although they could very well have been guests at the party, but they weren't asked for and I thought enough people were involved already, so… yeah… and NOT including them actually makes the story more canon-ish, as they don't appear in TT… ;) Wintergreen, however, does, if only as a cameo-role…


	8. 08 Until You Get Well

A/N: Merry Christmas **am! "am" **is another anonymous reviwer and this is a bit of a new situation, because normally I always demand that wishers should be logged in to be allowed to make a wish. I didn't make that demand this time, however, as it was not a competition in that way and because everyone could leave as many suggestions as they wanted… so this is for the mysterious "am" who, however, IS a regular reviewer!

This is inspired loosely by a book/movie, but I have not actually seen or read the original. I've read the synopsis, though, and seen scenes from it, but the wisher suggested it as a base for a story and I couldn't resist. So if you are thinking, when reading this, that it reminds you of something, it's because it's meant to… I won't tell you WHAT until the bottom A/N, though, because I don't want to give too much away… Oh, but it's not Twilight! I wouldn't be THAT cruel! ;) And it's an older movie, so don't feel too bad if you actually haven't seen it.

Warnings: This is dark as this is a dark-day, but I can't really give you a level… all I can say is that it's not a rape-fic.

The genre is a canon-ish "what if".

* * *

**Until You Get Well **

Robin didn't know how it happened. One moment his bike was zooming down the mountain road towards Jump and the next it flew out from under him.

When he woke up the first he felt was pain running up his whole right side.

"You were lucky, Robin… it's mainly bruises," a voice said.

"Slade?" the teen blinked in surprise, although he wasn't alarmed. Slade had changed a lot in the last year, but he still didn't expect the man to show up at his sick-bed. He looked around.

"Where am I? What happened?"

"At my place… the Titans called me when they found you. You had an accident, but you managed to press the panic-button on your belt, so they got to you quickly."

"But… why am I _here_? Why not in the Tower's sick-bay or in a hospital?" the teen asked. He looked down on himself, finding that he was dressed in a t-shirt and cotton sweatpants. He could also feel that he was missing his mask. The mask thing was rather irrelevant, as the man knew his identity, but the thought of Slade changing him was somewhat unsettling.

"Robin…" the man sat down heavily on a chair next to the bed. "Promise not to be alarmed, but… your bike. It had been tampered with… There was a device so someone could cause the thing to malfunction, and that's not all. When Cyborg did a search he found that the whole Tower had been infiltrated. Cameras, listening devices, even things that could produce poison, and… it was all centered around you."

"They… didn't think I would be safe there?" Robin gaped.

"It was pretty clear you wouldn't be… this is no laughing matter either; it serious. Someone wants you dead. Batman even found some equipment in your room in Wayne manor! No one knows of our connection, or of this place, though. It's isolated and safe so I offered to let you stay here and recover… as of now the assassin might think he or she has gotten away with it, which might be good… but if you would rather go to a hospital …"

"No… no, I think it's best to lay low too…" Robin said."Thanks… it's very nice of you to do this for us… well… me…"

"It's clear you are in serious danger… looks like you need some protection for a change," Slade said seriously.

"Yeah, but still…" Robin shrugged one shoulder a little awkwardly. "Thank you."

"Let's just say I'm your number one fan," the man smirked. "And I know having me as a baby-sitter will annoy the hell out of you… so there's an upside for me too," he added, making the teen chuckle before turning serious again.

"Maybe I should call the team, though, to say I'm okay?"

"I'll do that… All the communication to and from the Tower and Wayne Manor is being supervised, but we have made up a system where I'll call from a hidden number, pretending to be a salesman, just to let them know that you are okay."

"Great, but… didn't they remove the listening devices? And why can't I call?"

"If they remove the items, the assassin will know that we are onto him… and there is a voice identification system involved. I've had a quick look at the programming and it seems very hard to trick… it can pick up on the smallest things including errors in a dialect... but if you are absolutely sure…"

"No… no you better do it, then…" Robin said and shook his head. He didn't want to risk anything and his fake accents sucked.

Slade nodded and went to get a phone.

"I only have a land-line. Well, I have a cell too, of course, but the reception up here is bad on a good day…" he explained. "I'll make the call through a type of switchboard which makes the number untraceable to a specific phone, but it won't look too suspicious as many businesses, especially phone sales-men, uses hidden numbers," he continued as he started to dial.

"Cyborg, Teen Titans, what's up?" Cy's well known voice answered.

"This is Charles calling from the Royal Sleep Emporium. Your new bed is ready for delivery," the man said, and his east-cost accent was excellent.

"Dude, you _so_ got the wrong number there," Cy chuckled.

"Oh, I'm sorry… the note is a bit smudged… did your number have thirty eight at the end or eighty eight?"

"Eighty eight."

"Oh, that's the problem then, again I apologize. Have a nice day."

"Sure, thanks!" the Titan said jovially and ended the call.

"There… they are now informed that you are awake and feeling well under the circumstances," Slade smiled and closed the phone.

"Really? Was it the numbers, or..?"

"Oh, no, we didn't want to risk anything with actual code. If you were still unconscious I would have called about a long distant call service," Slade chuckled.

"Ah…" Robin grinned. Well… what's wrong with me?"

"Dislocated shoulder, bruised ribs, at least one probably broken, your femur was badly broken but Raven managed to mostly heal it before you got here, but you should keep off it for a while… It really took a lot out of her, though, so she had to leave the rest of the injuries... She said to tell you she's sorry about that… the rest is hopefully cuts and bruises. You were lucky to be wearing the kind of protection and helmet you did."

"Yeah… it happened when I was just slowing down at a curve too," Robin nodded. "The bike just… jumped."

"It was a good thing it was on a timer, though. It was set to go off one hour after you started that bike."

"That means my intended killer might not have been close by, at least, but it means he knows my routine… I usually take the bike out on this round on Sundays, and one hour would mean I should be heading home through mountains… the bastard had it all planned…"

"It seems so… "

"One more thing… he knows my identity… and Bruce's…"

"Do you think it's an old Gotham friend?" Slade asked.

"Well… it seems subtle for them… there were no clown-balloons at the site, was there?" Robin grinned.

"No, but people change… and maybe they didn't want to leave a calling card…" Slade mused.

"Maybe so…" Robin said and then groaned. "Fuck, it hurts…"

"I'll get you something for that… it's a morphine-based painkiller, but its mild compared to the real thing…"

"I'll take a handful of those then," Robin smirked.

"Not going to happen, but you can have two. They might make you a bit drowsy, though…"

"I'm already drowsy."

Slade was instantly on alert.

"Any nausea? Double vision? Memory loss?"

"No, no, I'm just tired… feels like I've been through a lawn-mower…" the teen assured him.

"Fine, but if you don't wake up I won't have your team yelling at me," Slade warned him.

"I'll write you a note," Robin grinned.

* * *

He did fell asleep from the pills and when he woke up there was a big bunch of flowers on the bedside table. There was also a button with a note, which said "press me" so Robin did. He heard a low buzzing sound in the distance and a moment later Slade walked in.

"Glad you're awake again. How are you feeling now?"

"Still bruised," the teen shrugged with a little smile, "but no dizziness or anything."

"Good… how's the pain?"

"Manageable. What's with the flowers? Didn't think you were the type…"

"Oh, but you don't know me very well yet…" Slade said and laughed at Robin's surprised expression. "They're not from me. Raven stopped by when you were asleep… they all sent you gifts…" the man picked up a backpack from the floor and sat down on the bed.

"Oh, I'm sorry I missed her…"

"Yes, it was unfortunate… especially since they might not be able to come by much. If they were spotted flying or driving in this direction every day, especially as there's nothing out here, it would look suspicious."

"Yeah, I get it… could use some stuff though… you know… clothes, toothbrush…"

"I've picked up a few pair of sweats and hygiene products… with the cameras in place your team can't go in and raid your room, after all… they have to be very careful now. If there's something you need, just tell me."

"Thanks… you're really going to a lot of trouble… what are they paying you?" the teen smirked.

Slade chuckled a little.

"Oh, enough…" he grinned. "So, let's see… Hand held videogames from Beast Boy and Cyborg, I assume…" the man said and placed those on the bed.

"Great!" Robin grinned.

"Let's see… a jar of mustard?"

"Starfire…" Robin snickered. "She can't be without it so she thinks no one else can either…"

"I see…" Slade said, though he was clearly confused. "Ah, books. Raven I assume… .hmmm…"

"What?"

"The collection of Edgar Allan Poe was expected, but… a romance novel?"

"Oh, Rae is a closet romantic. She loves the sappy stuff…" Robin let him know. "It's so sweet of them, lending me their own stuff when they couldn't go into my room…"

"Yes, well, it gives you something to do… and just ask if you want a TV or something. I don't have an antenna, but you could watch DVD's or play games…"

"Thanks, but I feel like resting my head a bit first…" the teen smiled. "Oh, I wouldn't mind a news-paper, though."

"The last one I have is two days old, I'm afraid… It's quite a drive to the nearest store and I don't want to be seen there every day… people will start to talk… and that's not about you, you understand, but this house is a bolt hole of mine. If people were to be looking for me I don't want a whole town to be able to point the way to the one-eyed man's house …"

"I understand," Robin nodded. "If you need to stock up on anything, though?"

"Yes, of course… and I have to go all the way into Jump for a TV and DVD player if you end up wanting them anyway, so I'll pick up what you need then.

"Do you have a laptop? Not for now, but later?"

"Yes, but no internet connection, I'm afraid."

"Wow, you're really roughing it out here," Robin shook his head. "Where is 'here' by the way?"

"Up in the mountains, as the birds flies it's not terrible far from where you crashed, but on the other side of the summit… do you know the serpentine road starting by the dried out river-bed?"

"Yeah, I love driving there!" Robin said.

"Well, half way up there's a small gravel road, not much more than a track, that's where you'll find this house, if you ever need it… though you have to drive up hill for quite a while."

"Oh… thanks! I didn't really expect you to tell me where it is…" Robin said, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Why not? Your friends already know… and I guess this is all about mutual trust. You have to trust that I'll take care of you, after all, and won't leave you to rot."

"Thanks for that image…" Robin scrounged up his nose.

"Well, I have things to do. I must organize all the supplies, after all, and chop some wood. This place was empty when the Titans called, so I had to restock on more or less everything."

"It that why there's bars on the windows?" the teen asked.

"Hm?" the man turned around to look, "Oh, yes. The house might be isolated, but that makes it more likely that it will be thrashed if the wrong people found it, so there's a 'cage' of sorts on the outside of all the windows, screwed to the frame… You need to turn off the alarm and use a screwdriver to get them off and I just haven't gotten around to doing that yet."

"That's fine, there are more important things to do," Robin shrugged.

"There is, but I'll get started on it when I'm done with those… I wouldn't want you to feel claustrophobic," the man smirked.

The teen snorted amusedly and shook his head.

"Is there anything else you need? Bathroom? I think it's best if you don't get up just yet, but I have a bottle here, and I can carry you to the toilet if you need it."

"I'm fine for now but leave the bottle," Robin blushed a bit.

"Of course. Press that button if you need me, I'll hear that signal even outside the house," the man said as he left.

Robin leaned back against the pillows. He examined the games and the books for a bit, but was really too tired to read or play right now, so he decided on a nap.

* * *

Two days later and he was feeling a bit restless. Slade helped with the pain and the pills worked wonders, but they did make him a bit drowsy. Robin didn't mind, as sleeping seemed like a good way to pass the time, but he got annoyed when he missed yet another visit, this time from Beast Boy, who hadn't been able to bring anything as he had flown here in the shape of a sparrow. The teen had waited for Robin to wake up and amused himself by thoroughly beating Robin's high score on one of the games over and over again, leaving messages in the name-slots like 'BBrulez', 'getwell' and 'URlazy'. Robin had laughed when he saw them and then worked like hell to try to beat the scores again.

Slade did take good care of him, though, Robin had to admit, and he thought he preferred the man to his team when it came to embarrassing bathroom business and sponge bathes. The man still didn't think Robin should get out of bed, however, and it made the Titan a bit irritated in the long run. So much so that he actually snapped at the man when he came in with a lunch tray.

"I thought you would get rid of the bars!" he said, gesturing to the windows.

"I've done almost the whole house, but I need to use a power tool, and it makes a bit of noise… didn't want to wake you up," Slade said calmly.

"Yeah, well… do it. It feels like a cage…" Robin muttered.

"Fine, I'll do it while you eat," Slade said and put the tray down. The food was always very good, even though Robin knew that most of it must have come from tins, and seeing it made him feel guilty.

"Listen, I'm sorry… I was just…"

"I've been bedridden as well, many times. I know what it's like… makes you want to strangle people…" the man smirked.

"… Yeah…" the teen muttered.

"Don't worry about it. Eat, and I'll get rid of the bars," the man said and left the room. Not long afterwards he reappeared outside the window and waved at the teen, who guiltily waved back.

The tool did make a bit of noise, but Slade had only loosened one screw when the sound changed and then died down with a little strange coughing sound. Robin heard the man curse, loudly, and couldn't help but snicker. Getting mad at tools… typical. He watched the man stalk away, and a little while later Slade came back into the room.

"Battery died. I put it in the charger."

"Yeah, listen, it's not really important!" Robin claimed, feeling worse than ever now. "I'll be fine in a week or two and then you just have to put all of them back again… don't mind it… really…"

"I'll take care of it…" Slade persisted. "Are you feeling well, though, you look a bit clammy…" the man put a hand to his forehead, a familiar touch by now. Slade actually could tell his temperature very correctly that way, they had checked. He had been running a bit of a fever, nothing serious and not unexpected, but now he was feeling okay.

"It's probably nothing," the man nodded to himself… I'm going to take you outside. If I can't get the windows open, I'll get you some fresh air some other way…"

"That'd be great!" Robin smiled widely.

Not long afterwards he was half lying in a comfy reclining chair, with blankets around him as the air was a chilly up in the mountains this time of year. There was no snow yet, but Slade told him that there had been frost the other night.

"I'm going to cut some more wood," the man told him. The house had electricity but it also had a wood-burning stove and fireplaces in most of the rooms, which provided the heat. Robin had come to love lying in bed and looking into the flames just before falling asleep at night, it reminded him of falling asleep in a big chair in front of the fire in Wayne Manor when he was little.

Slade got to work on the other side of the yard and Robin found himself watching with interest. He might have been a bit entertainment-starved he had to admit, but seeing the large clumps of logs turn into a neatly stacked pile of firewood was rather fascinating. After a while Slade took off his shirt before continuing. Robin stated to feel like he was watching a porno, and just waited for the pizza delivery guy to come by. This got his mind running which caused some very unwelcome reactions, so the teen began to watch a couple of magpies bickering over something instead. Being carried to the toilet was one thing, but there were limits the teen really didn't want to cross.

"Are you alright here while I take a shower?" Slade suddenly asked from in front of him.

"I… err... yeah!" Robin said, drawing the blankets tighter around him as he watched the man drying his chest off using his discarded shirt.

As soon as the man had disappeared inside, Robin reached into his sweatpants. He felt really, really weird about this, but he needed to do it. It didn't take long either, and, after weighing his options, he licked up the evidence on his fingers. It was far, _far _better than letting Slade find suspicious stains on his clothes or blankets. He kept blushing a lot around Slade for the rest of the day, however.

The man kept him up to date when it came to trying to figure out who was after him, but it was moving slowly. The Titans couldn't do much without arousing suspicion, but they had managed to pinpoint a signal to Gotham.

"It might be Two-Face…" Robin murmured. "He doesn't have the skills, but he can hire people who do… he does have the brains to plan it, though, I think…"

"I'll ask Batman to keep an extra eye on him, but what's the motive?" Slade asked.

"I don't know… that's what's weird with it coming from Gotham… I mean, they might try to get to Batman through me, I guess, but I left years ago…"

"It can be a father-son thing…" Slade mused. "If someone blames Batman for the loss of his son… or daughter, I guess… maybe he is out for revenge…"

"Yeah, maybe…" Robin said.

"That doesn't make it personal, though, and I almost hoped it would be…"

"Hey!"

"I only meant that it would be easier to track this person down if he or she has a personal connection to you; if you have met… interacted…"

"Yeah, I got it…" Robin sighed heavily. "And still I don't… I mean… who it could be…?"

"It could be someone from Jump who has moved to Gotham or has connections there…" Slade said thoughtfully. "Who do you know who has disappeared?"

"Quite a few, many crooks we only see once… oh, we ran that mafia-boss out of town last month…"

"And this you say _now_?" Slade exclaimed. "Who? Tell me everything you know about him!"

Robin did and then shrugged. "I was just thinking 'villains' you know," he said, making air-quotes with his fingers. "Not, well… 'regular' ones."

"This could very well be mafia related. Personal vendetta, but still a low profile, trying to make it look like an accident…"

"Yeah…" Robin said, warming up the idea.

"I'll start looking into it at once… it's going to take a few phone calls."

"I'm just glad we're getting somewhere..:" Robin smiled warmly.

"Me too…" the man, who was seated on his bed as usual, paused for a moment. Then he bent down and kissed Robin on the mouth.

"Wha…?" the teen's eyes got very wide, staring at the man as he pulled back. "What the hell did you do that for?" Robin exclaimed.

"I…" Slade looked stunned for a moment as he seemed to wonder the same thing himself. "I- I'm sorry. I misread the signals. It won't happen again." With that he stood up and hurried out through the door.

"Slade, wait!" Robin called, not wanting to just leave it like that. The kiss might not have been welcomed, but he still depended on the man for many things and didn't want things to be weird and strained between them. They needed to work together, after all.

The man didn't return for hours, not even when Robin pressed the buzzer. The teen contemplated getting out of bed, because he was pretty sure he could hobble around by now if he was careful, but he stayed.

When the man returned it was with a food tray and a very closed off expression.

"Dinner. Do you need the bathroom?"

"No, but Slade, we need to talk-"

"No, we don't. It was a mistake. I apologized," the man said, setting the tray down and turned to leave again.

"No, stop! I… I was just surprised, alright? It didn't mean I didn't… like it…" Robin ended a bit halfheartedly.

The man made a derisive snort.

"Don't try to pretend for my sake, Robin… it was just… foolish…"

The teen waited patiently for the man to continue, and, after a little while, he did.

"You're a very handsome young man, Robin. Beautiful, even, if that term doesn't insult you… I know you're gay, I have known for quite a while after I saw you at a club once… and I… Well, I've been alone… for a long time… and being so close to you, watching you smile… laugh… bickering with you… I started imagining signs that weren't there, I see that now. You don't see me like that... I'm just an old man to you, and a criminal to boot… I don't know what I was thinking-"

"Slade stop!" Robin said sharply. "I… yeah, you're right, you're not my usual type, but you're not a bad looking man! I… well, let's just say that watching you chop wood left me with a bit of wood myself…" he admitted with an embarrassed grin. "It was just… unexpected."

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm usually much better at reading people," the man muttered. "But, as I said… it won't happen again."

"Even if I wanted it to?" Robin asked. When the man looked up in surprise, the teen continued. "I mean not right now, but… if we take it slow… maybe?"

"I'd like that…" the man said warmly. "But you're my patient first… so eat your food!" the man barked playfully.

Robin grinned and reached for the tray.

"Yes, nurse Slade," he smirked.

"If that nickname spreads…" the man warned him, and the teen snickered.

* * *

The following days the two of them slowly started to rebuild the strange friendship that had taking a hit by the kiss, and they moved further than that. Slade's touches lingered a bit more, and Robin let them… and then came the goodnight kiss. It was a great kiss, Robin decided, though Slade was clearly holding himself back. It was Robin who had to coax the man a bit, but he didn't mind.

Slade still didn't want him to walk around, but he was allowed to go to the bathroom by himself and take showers, as long as he left the door unlocked for emergencies. Robin accused the man of being a mother hen of the worst kind, the Slade just joked that if he had been, Robin would be tied to the bed.

After a few days Slade had to leave to get more provisions. He kissed Robin for quite a long time and told him to stay in bed.

"You always want me in bed…" the teen objected.

"More than you might think…" the man leered, making Robin blush again. They had never gone further than kisses and 'above the belt' touching, but it was clear the man wanted to. Robin was a bit more hesitant but also curious.

"Well, bring me back a paper, and we'll see…" he grinned.

"How about a whole stack?" the man chuckled.

After forty minutes Robin was bored and he needed to go to the bathroom, so he hobbled out of bed. Afterwards he didn't want to get in it again; he wanted some fresh air.

The door was locked, he found to his surprise, but it didn't take long for him to get it open. He guessed Slade hadn't wanted to leave it open if some random hiker or hunter would walk by, especially not with a weakened Robin inside, sleeping.

He pushed his feet into Slade's much-too-big work boots, as he didn't have any shoes of his own, and stepped out on the wooden veranda he had been sitting on before. He didn't want to sit down either, though; he was curious and needed to stretch his sore body. He went slowly, walking around the house. It only had one floor consisting of two bedrooms, a bathroom a kitchen with a combined dining room and a living room. It was a bit old fashioned and probably dated back at least a hundred years, but wouldn't look too out of place in row of small suburban houses either. He could picture it with cute window boxes and a nice little lawn… When he came to his side of the house he spotted the bars over the windows. He had completely forgotten about them and so, apparently, had Slade. Robin shrugged and moved on. He had decided to make an effort not to be bratty or demanding just because he was feeling a little cooped up and bored... that was childish after all.

Feeling a bit stronger and more confident, Robin decided to check the outhouses. The woodshed was as interesting as it sounded, and then there was a double garage where Slade kept his very nondescript car when he wasn't using it. There was something else in there, though, and Robin curiously lifted the tarp covering it.

"What the…" the teen mumbled. Right then headlights hit his back and breaks screeched.

"What the hell are you doing out here!" Slade barked.

"I… I just needed some air… What is my bike doing here?" Robin asked and went to pull more of the tarp off, exposing a bit more of it, including the remains of his gear and his belt. His communicator was there, too, it's battery beside it on the ground.

"Get over here right now!" the man growled and suddenly Robin's arm was grabbed and he was dragged away.

"Hey! Ouch, Slade, it hurts!" the teen yelled. "What's wrong with you? And what about my bike!"

The man stopped in the middle of the yard.

"God… I… I nearly hit you! I didn't expect- you scared the_ hell_ out of me…" Robin's arm was let go. "I'm sorry."

Robin knew all about turning fear into anger. Batman did it, and he himself too on occasion. He relaxed and nodded.

"I understand, it's okay… I'm sorry… but my bike?"

"The official story is that you have gone missing. We thought that would be best, because even though the sabotage was well hidden, your attacker must know that Cyborg would go through every part of the bike for answers and would find it… so you went out on a bike-ride, no one knows where, and never returned… The person behind this knows that you must have had the accidents in the mountains, but there's thousands off places to go off the road here without a trace… all it takes is a few low bushes to hide a motorcycle and a body, after all, and as long as there's no fire…"

"So you brought it here?"

"Yes… along with all your things. You communicator was disabled, of course, because of the tracker…"

Robin nodded again.

"Sorry… it was just a bit of a shock to see it, you know."

"I was planning on taking you out to do so," the man said, somewhat reproachfully, "but I was afraid that it would be a bit traumatic… well, now you have. Don't blame me if you have nightmares…"

"I won't…" the teen grinned. "Sooo… did you buy me anything?"

Robin got his newspapers, and a few magazines as well, and sat pouring over them at the kitchen table. The local ones reported him missing, just as Slade said, saying the Titans were grateful for any tips from the public. Robin scanned the other news and chuckled.

"They keep busy, though… lots of arrests…"

"Yes, I told them to lay of it a bit… that it might seem suspicious if they were acting like they weren't worried about you, but I was told that you'd have their asses if they slacked off…"

"True…" Robin smirked. "Have you made any progress about our dear mob-boss?"

"A bit," Slade answered, "I'm not sure yet, though, I have people working on it. Oh, and Batman. I don't think he would like it if I included him in 'my people'."

"No, he'd be a bit pissed…" the teen snickered. "Soo… what do we do now? I mean, I'm almost back on my feet here… maybe I should go back? Appearing in the Tower all of a sudden might really rattle the guy… I mean he must think he got away with it now, right, so if he finds out it's not true, he might show his hand…"

"Yes… it's dangerous, but I know you don't care…" the man smirked. "That's the plan, then, but the small poison-capsules are still in your room, so when you go back, don't go in there until they have been taken care of, or you would end up looking very silly…"

"Yeah, yeah… so when?"

"How's your leg?"

"I can hobble pretty good."

"I'd prefer it if you could run… a week."

"A _week_?"

"Your team needs to be informed, and maybe you'll need something to wear besides sweats… also Batman needs time to make sure our guy and his men are all bugged. Besides, if he sees that you are hurt, he'll know that you are weakened."

"Ha! Speak for yourself!" Robin snorted haughtily.

"Sounds like someone is fishing for some sparring…" the man smirked, making the teen's face light up. "Fine, but not today. You can start to move around inside the house a bit more. I'd like you to stay inside, though, because your face is everywhere and someone could come by and recognize you."

"Yeah, but that's my _masked_ face," Robin objected.

"Still, there's a reward, and people will report anything just in case," Slade shrugged. "If we're out together, though, I can vouch for you… calling you 'son' or something…" the man said with obvious distaste.

"Aw, don't go into that 'I'm too old or you'-swamp again!" the teen ordered. "That's up to _me_ to decide, isn't it?"

"Guess so…" the man shrugged. "What would you like for dinner, then?"

* * *

That night Robin_ did_ have a nightmare. He was walking around outside the house, but there were men hidden in every shadow and everywhere he looked things just seemed wrong… then with a sharp bang the garage doors swung open and his bike lounged out, attacking him. He sat up with a harsh cry, and a moment later Slade poked his head through the door.

"I want very much to say 'I told you so'…" the man muttered.

"Yeah…" Robin pressed a hand to his heart, trying to will it to slow down.

"Are you alright?"

The teen would normally snort and wave the man away, but there had been some real worry in the man's voice.

"Yeah…" Robin said softly. "But I could use a hug… and maybe something more…?"

They made love that night. Robin didn't quite know how it had happened; he remembered pulling the man down for a kiss and then things got a bit raunchy… Slade had been moving slowly, however, but at the same time driving him crazy, so even though Robin knew he could have said stop at any time, thinking back he still didn't believe he could have managed it…

He woke up with a smile on his lips, though, and still in the man's arms.

"Morning…" he mumbled, yawning.

"Morning," Slade answered and kissed him. The kiss was more demanding, more controlling than usual; it was clear that the man had regained some, if not most, of his confidence regarding whether or not Robin wanted him.

Over the next four days Slade left a few times to prepare and buy essentials, and when he was at the house they trained, carefully strengthening Robin's muscles again and working on his flexibility. In between sessions they had sex. Slade was always the instigator, and seemed to like it that way. Robin was holding back, partly out of guilt. He wasn't sure, but he suspected that this, in fact, was nothing but a nurse-patient fling of sorts. He was attracted to Slade, yes, and the man had a load of good qualities, but… something was missing. He was also still plagued by nightmares where people were screaming things at him, things he couldn't hear, while he was running round and round the house, trying to get away from whatever was after him. Usually it was the bike. Robin started to wonder if he would ever dare to get on one again.

He didn't leave the house now when Slade went on his errands. It seemed silly to risk anything when they were this close. When the car came up the grassy lane, however, Robin usually went out to meet him, and he did so this time as well.

"Hi, did you pick up any papers today?" he asked, as that had become something of a joke between them.

"Damn, no I forgot to stop at a store, I just picked up a message from Raven at one of our meeting-points to make sure everything is ready," the man said.

"And is it?" Robin asked. Slade had forgotten about the paper yesterday as well, but so what? He had a lot on his mind.

"Yes, I left a note with a date, three days from now as we decided," Slade told him as he unloaded what looked like a bag of clothes and a large take-out bag from the trunk.

"That's great… can't wait to see them again… not that I'm complaining about the company or anything," Robin grinned as the man passed him.

"I should hope not," the man smirked and stopped to kiss him. "Let's go inside, I'm starving and I bought Chinese. It just needs to be heated up a bit."

"Great, I'm right behind you!" Robin said, his mouth watering. As he was about to follow, however, he saw that the trunk hadn't shut properly. It was an old car and it had been through a few things, so the doors tended to jam or take a lot of force to shut, Robin had noticed. As he didn't want the battery to run out since the trunk light would be on if it wasn't closed, he hurried over. He was about to just press down on it, when he spotted a newspaper inside. It was an old one, he assumed, but what the heck… it might have a crossword puzzle.

He didn't know what he saw first. The date, the headline or the picture. Somehow they all mixed together. Today's date. The ruins, practically only the foundations, of a building… and the words… 'T-Tower Explosion: Four Bodies Found".

Robin froze. He was unable to breathe. He-

"Been snooping again?" his arm was grabbed and he looked up, startled, into Slade's grim face.

"What… what is this… what… Slade… what?" he started, looking to the man for some kind of explanation.

"I was going to tell you… I just found out… I didn't know how to say it…" Slade started in a calm, deep voice, the one he used when Robin had had a nightmare. "It must have been the Mob…"

"But… but…" images were flashing through Robin's mind. Conversations, memories… "No, but you just said you left a message for Raven today! And this… this happened two days ago! You went into the city yesterday, you couldn't have missed the Tower being gone!"

"Like I said, I didn't know how to tell you…" the man said. "I'm so sorry Robin… but you have _me_… we'll get to the bottom of this… we'll catch that man, I swear."

But Robin wasn't listening, not really, because suddenly some of the things he had seen in his dreams became clear. The windows with the pretty window boxes. The windows whose frames weren't showing a _single sign_ of ever having had security bars mounted over them. There should have been holes, plugged up, perhaps, but they should have been there. But they weren't. Only over his windows.

And his bike. The back wheel, which he had only glimpsed before, came into focus. That hole. It hadn't come from the crash… it was a gunshot, totaling the wheel, making the bike recoil like that. He wouldn't have heard the gun with the helmet on and the wind and motor noise drowning all the other sounds… and if he had really pressed the panic-button…

"He would have known…" Robin mumbled.

"What was that? Come in and eat now… I know you're in shock, but you need to eat," Slade said, his grip on the teen's arm still as firm.

"The one watching the Tower! If my panic signal had come through, he would have known and he would have watched the Titan's reactions, maybe followed them as well, he would have known that they knew about the accident… that I was alive, even!"

"Perhaps they got the call when they were out, maybe-"

"No! No,_ you_ were the one surveying us, weren't you? _You_ made me crash, _you_ brought me here!"

"Robin, you are in shock, calm down," the man said again, trying to drag the teen inside. "You know I spoke to Cyborg-"

"No! No you called, yes, but he really thought you really the wrong number! And Raven was never here! You watched us, you knew exactly what we liked, what books we read, what games we played! You just bought them and made them looked used! And then you played my game, leaving those messages for me, pretending they were from BB!" Robin was yelling at the top of his lungs now.

"Trust me, I didn't plan this-" Slade started.

"Yes! Yes, you did! You killed them!"

"Yes, _that_ part I planned of course…" the man smirked."I just didn't plan for you to find out. I was going to tell you about the Tower, you would grieve and turn to the only one you had; me… because you are _mine_, Robin. How come you never could understand that? I told you, so long ago, that I wasn't very happy with you choosing your worthless little friends over me… did you think I would just accept that?"

"But… you changed…"

"Yes… and you_ like_ the new me, don't you? Still Slade, still a bit dangerous, but oh so sensitive and cuddly, right? So insecure. So quick to admit he's wrong and beg your forgiveness… Raven wasn't the _only_ closet romantic in your group… you have a hero-complex, Robin… so I let you save me."

"You… fucking… _ASSHOLE_!" the teen yelled and head-butted the man in the nose. Slade cursed and loosened his grip long enough for Robin to pull himself free and begin to run across the yard.

"Where are you going, Robin?" the man asked, that deceivable calm voice back. "You can't run for long, you don't even have shoes… and don't even try the car, I have the keys right here… so come on in… let's talk… no one will disturb us here."

"Shut the fuck up!" Robin cried, tears streaming down his face. He might not have been head over heels in love with the man, but he had been falling for him and his charms… and now his friends were dead because of it. Slade was right, though; he couldn't run. Even now splinters from the chopped wood were cutting into his feet. He was hobbling worse than ever and now he heard Slade's sure, slow, steps coming towards him.

It was not in panic he pulled the axe from the chopping block, but in ice cold resolution. He swung with his whole body, turning around and letting it fly. The whole move had happened in the blink of an eye, and even Slade had been too close to react in time. The sharp, wedge-shaped blade buried itself deeply in the man's chest. The man stepped back from the force but managed to grip the axe's handle and pull it out before it was dropped uselessly to the ground. Robin dove for it and hit the man's chest again, and again. Then Slade was on the ground, chest practically sliced open, and he wasn't moving. Holding his weapon tightly in case the man was faking it, Robin kneeled and retrieved the car-keys. Slade still didn't as much as breathe. On the other hand the teen was pretty sure he had damaged both lungs. Slade must be dead. But that didn't mean Robin wanted to hang around and check. He headed for the car, never letting the man out of his sight, not even as the car started and he turned it around.

For some reason he kept looking in the rear-view mirror the whole drive down to the nearest town.

It was a small one, Slade hadn't lied about that, but it had a police station, and Robin stopped there. He needed to call Bruce, he needed someone to go up to that house and just make sure Slade was dead, because _he_ sure as hell wouldn't go back. When he rushed in a male and a female officer met him.

"What in the world happened to you, son?" the man said.

"I'm-" Robin hesitated. He couldn't say that he was Robin, not without his mask… "My name is Dick Grayson, I'm from Gotham. I was kidnapped about… I think two or three weeks ago, and I just managed to escape… I … I think I killed the guy, and… I need to call my guardian, Bruce Wayne…" he got out between deep breaths and sobs.

"Oh dear…" the woman said, taking his arm gently. "Come sit down… can I get you a glass of water?"

"Just a phone, please, I really need a phone!" Robin said as he was made to sink down on an office chair.

"I…" She said and looked over at her college, who came up to him and place a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, son, but it's all over the news. Bruce Wayne died in explosion last night. The whole manor… no survivors."

"Just like our dear Titans," the female officer said softly, "But of course… Gotham is on the other side of the continent…"

"People have been looking for you, though… lawyers, mostly, I'm afraid. One or two has stated to be family friends in the papers, so whoever you want, we'll help you get in touch with… do you have any ID?"

"No… no, he took everything," Robin said. The police couldn't think that was very weird after all. "I… I'm sorry… I think I'll…" It was all too much… Robin just felt himself let go and everything turned black.

* * *

"…the poor boy…"

"We have a positive ID, at least, he's really Grayson."

Robin heard the voices filter through even before he was fully awake, and slowly fought his way to the surface. He was lying on a sofa in what looked like a staff's break room, with a blanket on top of him. He sat up and the voices stopped talking and hurried over. It was the same people as last time.

"There, there, Mr. Grayson, I'm sorry to do this to you at this point, but could you tell us about your kidnapper? You said you were afraid that you'd killed him?"

"Yeah… yeah… sure…" Robin described the way and what to expect when they arrived, and the male officer went out to dispatch a car.

"We need to transfer you down to Jump," the woman said. "This is only a two-car station, as this is such a small place, and you… well, you're a celebrity, and we can't guarantee that you'd be safe from the press… so we have kept your name to ourselves. We contacted the one person our sources could confirm really knew Bruce Wayne, a Mr. Lucius Fox… we showed him a picture of you and he confirmed your identity. He is flying here as we speak. I hope you understand that we had to confirm that you were who you claimed you were?"

"Yes… of course… and Lucius is a friend… he's alright."

"Good, I'll make sure he has clearance to see you when his plane lands," the woman nodded. "Now, how about that drink of water? Are you hungry? We have doughnuts…"

It was almost two hours until the male officer returned, looking a little pale.

"You really went to town on that guy, didn't you?"

"He's really dead?" Robin said hopefully.

"Well, there was a lot of blood… no body though. The house was pretty much cleaned out but most of the things were where you said they'd be…"

"But… how did he… I…" Robin felt the darkness seep in again and clenched his fists. "I killed him! I _know _I did! He's _dead_!"

"Sometimes a wound looks worse than it is. We found tracks from a car which had been hidden close by… A van of some kind we think, we're analyzing the tracks right now.

Of course… Slade must have had a truck or a van, Slade realized, how else would he have gotten the bike to the garage? Which reminded him… the bike… his gear… With Bruce dead, it really didn't matter if people found out that he was Robin, but he didn't want to be a hero right now…

"Did… did you find a bike? In the garage?"

"No, that was completely empty… was there supposed to be one?"

"Yeah… I crashed on one… that's how he found me…" Robin said.

"That explains your scrapes… Still… you could have broken something…"

"My… leg…" Robin started but then remembered. Raven hadn't healed anything. It had never been broken. Just sore and a bit banged up from the impact with the ground.

"What about it? Are you in pain?"

"What? No… No… it's fine…"

"We found narcotic pills too… he had you drugged up some of the time, didn't he?"

"Yeah…" Robin swallowed. "I… I need some time…"

"Of course. We didn't want to put you in cell after what you've been through, but you're welcome to stay in one if you need to be alone… we won't lock the door, of course."

"Thanks… I think I want that…" Robin mumbled.

"Fine. Oh, just one more thing… it might be an important clue to identifying this man… we found this note… do you think he wrote it? Do you know what it means?"

Robin got handed a piece of paper encased in a clear evidence bag. The letters were a bit scrawly, like they had been written in haste, or with the wrong hand.

"Yeah… this is his hand… I… I don't know what it means…" Robin lied. Because he did know. The words on the piece of paper seamed to scream out to him…

'I'm still your number one fan.'

_The End_

* * *

A/N: firstly, it you started reading this, feeling that something was just a bit off, but wasn't _sure_… then I succeeded… ;) The meek "I'm not worthy" Slade should have made you gag, though, and wonder what the hell was wrong with me… It was hard to write him like that, actually… he didn't want to pretend THAT much… ;)

Secondly, this was, according **Am's** wishes, inspired (very loosely) on the movie "Misery", which was based by the book with the same name by Stephen King.

I've read the synopsis for both the book and the movie on Wikipedia, and I've mixed them up a bit, since they seem rather different in several aspects….

Many things are the same though: it starts with a crash (although a car, not a bike, and it really was an accident) the remote house, the friendly façade which cracks at times… the fact that Robin thinks others knows where he are… I also included the mention of a lawn mower, simply because a character in the book dies from being, among other things, run over by one… ;) In the book the main character gets his foot cut off by an axe… News-paper clippings also play a big part in the original story, so I let ordinary newspaper have a similar part in this… I didn't think Slade was the scrap-book kind of guy… ;)

The line "I'm your number one fan" is also from "Misery" (the movie, at least), and I thought it fit very well with Slade's somewhat obsessive behavior in the cartoon… ;)

I loved writing this story, it gave me the creeps… I think I've managed to write a truly evil Slade here… ;)


	9. 09 Try It For Real

A/N: Merry Christmas **MyLittleBird! **

This drabble-suggestion was that Robin shouldn't be as innocent as I usually tend to write him…

Genre: Fluffy. Warning for very lovable, although somewhat domineering, Slade.

* * *

**Try It For Real**

Robin was leaning against a wall, chatting to a guy in the alley outside one of Jump's gay clubs. He had turned all his charms on, and the guy was falling for them quickly.

"I live pretty close to here… if you wanna…?" the guy said. Robin had forgotten his name, but grinned brightly. He had had his eye on this one all night and it was finally paying off.

"Sure… I-"

A large shadow suddenly landed next to the hero, grabbing him by the neck.

"I don't think so. You," the shadow said to Robin's new interest, "get out of here." The kid didn't have to be told twice.

"What the hell!" the Titan growled and tried to twist out of the grip, but to no avail.

"Settle down, lover boy…" Slade snorted. "This has gone far enough. You're going through the gay men in Jump like Pepé Le Pew on Viagra."

"So? I have needs, Slade, ever heard of those? Apart from killing, that is… I'm not hurting anyone!"

"Besides yourself. Hold on."

Robin had no idea what the man meant by the last part but instinctively grabbed hold of Slade's waist, and the next moment they were flying through the air.

They landed on a roof a few seconds later and Robin was a bit shaken after the sudden change of location.

"These things are quite handy now and again," Slade said to no one in particular and put the grapple-hook away in his belt. "Crude, yes, but still."

"What's this about? You jealous, Slade? Wanna fuck me? Fine! I was looking forwards to topping tonight, though…" the teen growled as he found his voice again.

"I don't want to fuck you, at least not tonight. These one night stands, however, they have to stop. Even your friends are worried," the masked man said.

"And since when do you care what the Titan's think? I'm eighteen, I'm legal. Deal with it."

"I am. I think you meant I should ignore it," Slade deadpanned.

"What does this have to do with you anyway? Do you want to be my dad again, or what?" Robin knew he was being a bit unfair. Slade might still be a bit shady, but he had actually helped the Titans out several times, and he had also known about Robin's identity for a few years and kept it to himself. It would be idiotic to actually _trust_ the man, but the team had started to think of him like more of a vigilante than a villain.

"I want you to stop sleeping around."

"Oh, that's rich… so you want me to settle down? Get married? Have a bunch of kids? Because that works really well when you're a hero, you know…" Robin said bitterly.

"I know what you mean-"

"No, you don't! You have no fucking idea! Just leave me alone!"

"You tried to date. The first guy cheated on you, the second found out who you were, got injured because of it and blamed you, the third was a jealous control freak, the fourth tried to knock you around, the fifth-"

"Yes, yes, you're a creepy-ass stalker, I get it!" Robin snarled.

"I don't think you do. So, after the sixth, you gave up on relationships and started having one night stands instead… It's understandable, to a degree, but you have gone too far. You're not having fun anymore, you're self-destructing."

"So? What's it to you?" the teen muttered.

"As I said, I'm here to stop it."

"Are you planning to kill every gay guy in Jump, because really, that's what you have to do…" Robin snorted.

"No. I'm here to tell you that, from now on, you're in a committed relationship again. With me."

Robin gaped for several seconds before he burst out in a strange, choked laugh.

"E-excuse me? You're my _boyfriend_?"

"That might be a fitting term, yes."

"Are you _insane_?"

"No, which is not what you could say about your number six…"

"I… I can't believe this, I-"

"Accept the inevitable, Robin. And now…" the man caught him around his waist and pressed him to his chest. Robin felt his breath hitch and his heart beat a few extra times. "…I'm going to take you home." The teen opened his mouth to object but they were snatched away by the jump cord once more.

When they landed again, for more than a few seconds, they were at the dock, close to the Titan's secret underwater tunnel. Robin realized that it wasn't _that_ secret after all.

"You are to go home now. I'll pick you up tomorrow at eight. Be ready. And wear something a little less degrading than these scraps… shirt and tie," Slade told him.

Robin found himself speechless again for a bit and then spluttered. "How dare… I'm not… you're…"

"I'll see you tomorrow. And Robin? If you're thinking about going out there to pick up some fresh meat… don't."

* * *

Slade could take his orders and shove them, as far as Robin was concerned, and that was his final decision. Therefore it was a big surprise to him when he found himself dressed and ready and eight precisely the next night. He had no idea how that had happened. Even his team had been supportive, maybe even a bit forceful…

"You clean up nicely."

Robin jumped and turned around to a spot that he swore just a moment ago had been nothing but a shadow.

"H-hi…" the teen had planned to say something scathing and walk away, but the fact that Slade was standing before him unmasked for the first time, had him literally stunned. "…you… too…" Actually he was Robin's type for when he wanted to bottom, which was quite often; tall, broad shouldered, looking like he was at the prime of his life. Robin wanted an experienced man on top of him, and although Slade's white hair was normally a sign of a bit _too_ much experience, this wasn't the case here. An old man couldn't move like Slade… couldn't_ look _like Slade… so the hair was a bit of a mystery, a riddle for Robin to solve. Actually the whole man was a riddle, and Robin internally shrugged. He guessed he could go on one stupid date with him… he could write it off as research.

* * *

Their night consisted of the classic 'dinner and a movie'. The restaurant had real tablecloths and linen napkins and the movie didn't have monkeys or ninjas in it. It was… not bad. Even the conversation flowed pretty well, even though, at first, that was all Slade's doing.

The man had a car with a driver at hand the whole night and dropped Robin off half past twelve at the docks and then escorted him to the hidden tunnel.

"So… wanna come in?" Robin grinned. He was quite looking forwards to it, and didn't care what the other Titans might think… they helped to set him up, after all, so they had to deal with the consequences.

"Not on the first date," the man told him and Robin had a feeling that he had just gotten his fingers slapped. "I had a good time, however. I'll call you." With that the man bent down and brushed his lips against Robin's.

"I… yeah… okay…?" the teen stammered.

* * *

The next day, just as promised, Slade called, and before he knew it, Robin was on his second date. This time it was the theater, a really fun newly written play. The teen got a slightly longer kiss this time but was again left with no more than a promise of a call. Frustrated he contemplating throwing his club-clothes on and going out again, but somehow he couldn't quite get himself to do it.

Their next date was an actual honest-to-god picnic. Robin almost laughed when Slade suggested it, but he went along with it anyway. It was a warm day so they placed their blanket in the shade of a tree, and, as the hours passed, they had to move it several times. Robin's eyes felt heavy and he stretched out on the blanket, carefully placing his head in Slade's lap. He wasn't sure if the man would push him away, but Slade only leaned back against the tree and closed his eye.

"This is nice, isn't it?" the man mumbled.

"Yeah… yeah it is…" Robin mumbled back.

They dozed a bit until the sun burned their legs once more and they had to move. Slade packed everything up in the basket and then he suggested a walk in the large park. Robin agreed. The heat was rather stifling, but under the trees in the woody areas it would be cooler.

There was a huge natural lake in the middle of the park, and Robin looked longingly at people bathing by the artificial beach on the other side of it.

"You want to take a dip?" Slade asked.

"Umm… didn't bring any trunks…" Robin chuckled.

"Come."

They followed the path until it veered off from the lake at a rougher patch of forest, and then the man turned and walked straight into the woods. Robin had no idea where they were going until they reached a small clearing right by the lake-side. There was a little cove here, protected by trees at both sides, and the thick vegetation was keeping people away. There was no sand here, only grass and pebbles, but Slade pulled out the blanket again. There was just room for it, and the man looked rather pleased with himself.

"Ready to cool off?"

"Well, I still don't have any trunks…" Robin said carefully, not wanting to sound like he was raining on the parade so to speak.

"Oh, I don't think a bit of skinny dipping will kill you…" Slade said and started to unbutton his short-sleeved shirt. "The lake it wide enough so no one will see… just get in quickly if you're embarrassed."

The teen looked at the water again. It looked so incredibly inviting and he really needed to cool off. Slade had already folded up his shirt, and was taking off his shoes. Robin stole a glance or three of the muscled chest and abs, before making up his mind and pulling his own t-shirt over his head. He kicked off his shoes next and hesitated when he came to his khaki-colored capris.

"Want me to turn away?" Slade said and Robin looked over at him, discovering that the man was now fully nude.

"I… um… yeah… I mean…"

"Of course, just get into the water," the man chuckled and turned away. Slade's backside was also a sight for sore eyes…

Robin pulled his trousers and underwear off in a rush and wade d out into the cool water as quickly as he could. It got deeper almost at once, and only a second or so later he could yell an 'all clear' to Slade.

"I know, I peeked," the man purred.

"Well I guess it's only fair…" Robin said, trying to act indifferent but blushing all the same.. Robin had no idea why he was feeling shy. He had spent the last couple of months dropping his pants at the quirk of an eyebrow, after all, but this, now, was different.

"AAH!" the teen jumped and stared at Slade. The man had splashed him. _Splashed_! Well… this only meant one thing… war.

After they both were properly soaked they swam out to the middle of the lake and then raced back. Robin thought he had a shot at winning when Slade cheated by grabbing his ankle and then pulling him towards him. Kissing him was even more of a cheat because that made Robin forget the race altogether.

Slade carried him up to the blanket, and they dried in the sun while kissing and touching until Robin thought he would just burst. Slade, however, yet again pulled away. This time the teen followed, however.

"Please… this isn't about me being horny… I want you… _you_… please?"

"How about this… I'll take you out to dinner tomorrow, and then we'll go to my place… how does that sound?"

"Wonderful… but there are too many hours until then…" Robin pouted.

Slade chuckled and kissed him one more time.

"Well, your boyfriend just wants to treat you right, and he will…"

"My boyfriend is a teasing jerk…" Robin snorted, but couldn't hold back a little snicker.

* * *

The dinner the next night was wonderful and must have cost a fortune. Slade didn't even let Robin look at the bill, even though the teen had insisted on treating the man as well, when he had the opportunity. Hell, Slade should know that he'd gladly put out anyway, right?

They walked from the restaurant, the night pleasantly warm. It was a weekday, so there were not too many people milling around, disturbing them. Robin felt a tingle in his stomach as Slade stopped by a gate and unlocked it. He was nervous! He was actually _nervous_! About _sex_, of all things! Slade, like he was sensing that the teen was apprehensive, took Robin's hand and led him through to a small cobbled courtyard and then into another door and up three flights of stairs.

The apartment was light, spacious and clean, but Robin was only interested in the bedroom.

"Would you like a glass of wine?" the man asked, and the teen almost stomped his feet in frustration. Slade chuckled, but poured the glasses anyway, handing Robin one. "Patience, Robin… this will be our first time, but not the last… and we have all night… and all morning, unless there's an alarm."

"I… kinda told the team to try to handle things themselves…" Robin blushed.

"Funny, so did I…" Slade smirked.

The wine was nice, and Slade showed Robin a small art-collection he had, while the teen laughed and told him that that was only supposed to be a _line_. Still, the painted ceramics and little figures were interesting as they all were over a thousand years old and depicted gay couples in different situations. Usually naughty ones.

"You're such a pervert…" the teen chuckled as he studied a particular clay figure of two men so tightly entwined it was hard to see where one man ended and the other began.

"Ah, yes, but I'd thought I'd wait a couple of months before introducing that part…" Slade said innocently.

"If you wish… there's a part of you, however, that I'd like very much to get introduced to…" Robin grinned and put down his empty glass.

"And I don't think I'll be able to deny you any longer…" Slade said and put an arm around the younger man's waist. "This way…"

* * *

Robin was absolutely filthy, tired beyond words and completely satisfied. He slowly sat up on the bed, looking idly for his shirt, when an arm pulled him back.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I… oh… right…" Robin felt like an idiot.

"I understand, instinct is hard to battle. You are used to leave as quickly as possible, but you don't need to do that now. Actually, I won't let you."

"I… don't _want_ to… not really…" Robin admitted, surprising even himself.

"Good. Didn't want to tie you up…"

"Not for a month, right?" the teen grinned.

"Exactly."

Robin snuggled into the man, breathing in his scent, feeling… at ease, for the first time in what felt like forever.

"Slade? I think I kinda like this relationship-thing…" he mumbled.

"Good," the man said and kissed his hair. "Because like it or not… you're stuck in one."

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Awww… I knew Slade's possessiveness was a good thing… actually, it's always a good thing, no matter how the story ends… hmmm…


	10. 10 Siren

**A/N: **Merry Christmas** Corrosive Moon!**

I might have messed up here a bit… as I gathered all of the reader's requests I put them under "light", "dark" or "undecided" according to your wishes… I found this wish under "light" though, and it didn't SOUND very light… well… it COULD be, but the plot-bunny that bit me was the serious kind… so this goes under dark. It's not DARK dark, (that is, nothing dark happens) it's just not very fluffy… ;)

Warnings: bit angsty… also AU in the canon-but-not-quite way.

* * *

**Siren**

I should have known there was something special about the boy… as just a child he stole the attention and adoration of hundreds of people every night, performing with his parents. And then, after they died, he somehow made Bruce Wayne, the reclusive and cold-acting millionaire, share not only his home but also his life's mission. The Dark Knight suddenly had a sidekick.

Robin grew but needed more than Batman could give him, although he would never quite know what it was he was missing. I know. Attention. Don't get me wrong, he's not an attention-seeking brat, but he needs someone to… _focus_ on him… and it's not his fault. It's his nature. Bruce couldn't give him that, because his main focus will always be Gotham.

After leaving the great, dark city it didn't take long until he formed the Titans. Again an almost incredible feat: uniting a group of strangers, _misfits_ even, most of them not even wanting to be part of a team… but he did it… and he became their leader. Quite extraordinary for a mere human boy. But he's not. Not human that is.

I could have dismissed the idea as people being saps or just sheep, looking for someone to lead them, but then I met him myself, eye to eye.

It wasn't so bad at first, not until he got interested in me… and then… First there was just fascination, then obsession. I couldn't think of anything else, nothing or no one seemed more important than my little bird. I did have moments of clarity, however, and it was at one of those times I figured it out… Robin is a Siren.

Don't get me wrong, he's not one of those half-naked bird-ladies that sit on cliffs singing to sailors. In fact, I've heard him sing once, and it's not that pretty. On the other hand, if he was naked on a cliff I would probably abandon ship to get to him…

No, Sirens look as human as you and me… well… as _you_, and no matter how much research I make, I can't find their origins. There are quite a few examples of what they can do and have done, both as heroes and villains, throughout history. They can make people follow them, almost mindlessly, and also have individuals do incredible things for their sake. Ever heard of Catherine the Great? Gustav Vasa? Well, maybe Joan of Arc, Helen of Troy, or Adolf Hitler seems more familiar?

Sirens do not have to be involved in wars or rule countries, however. They can be the girl next door, the cute boy in your math-class, and most of them don't even know they _are_ Sirens, and neither do their surroundings. Their friends do tend to wonder how they got talked into things now and then, however, but mostly it's benign... Some Sirens do suspect that they have some kind of gift, however, and how they use it depends entirely on their personality. They might become sect leaders, motivational speakers or… well... Oprah or Dr. Phil. I'm sure there is a difference.

As far as I can tell, Robin has no idea. He thinks people follow him because he's trying to do the right thing, because he's a hero. Silly little bird.

People do not automatically fall under his thrall, however. If that was true, Jump would be crime free. He has to either feel passionately about something and/or really focus on the individual as far as I can tell. I'm not saying that he doesn't affect the criminals at all, quite the opposite. Robin wants adventure, and, now and then, he loves a good fight… his needs are met. I am rather sure that Jump city would, in fact, not have quite as many villains if Robin had _not _settled here… but that's a hypothesis, I'm afraid. All I know is that he has kept me here, when I was just supposed to be passing through.

I'm deeply under his influence by now, more than anyone else, because he got attracted to me. I was almost taken aback at first, he was just a kid then, not even seventeen. Now he's nineteen, and here I am. Still here… still at his… service.

He's curled up next to me right now, in my bed. He's resting and I've made sure he needs it… I do everything to please him, after all.

His nose is pressed into the crook of my neck, and one arm and one leg is thrown over my body as I lay on my back, staring up at the ceiling. He makes a little noise and curls up even closer. I sense that he's a bit cold and pulls the covers up with my free arm. He sighs happily and falls into a deeper slumber.

Fuck.

I did it again.

I've tried everything to resist… I've experimented by shutting off my senses; sight, smell, hearing, but he still gets through. I tried it with him too… he thought I was being kinky… he liked it and the sex that brought on… I haven't even_ thought_ of such things in _years_…

He cuddles me, like I'm some sort of teddy bear, someone _safe_, there just for him… and when he is around, I _am_. And I hate it. I'm a killer, a mercenary for hire by anyone with the right amount of cash. Since Robin got his eyes on me, however, I've barely been in a fight. I'm more of a detective now, helping the Titans, although unofficially. I killed once, though. A child molester. Robin hated him from the moment the first body was found, and when I told him that I had found him… Robin looked at me and said that he wished people like that man didn't exist. That night I felt a need to go back to that house and, surprisingly enough, nothing held me back. The Titans swooped in only a few hours later to find the body. Robin found me the next morning. He said he would forgive me. Just this once.

You see? I'm just his puppet, and he doesn't even realize it.

It has to end.

I'm not a good man, I'm not a hero. I can't let myself be controlled like this. I'm not a servant, not even to him. He has became the center of my life, my sole reason to exist, and that has emasculated me, made me feel helpless… made me fear for him… and fear _him_.

He can make me die for him, I know that. If a notion like that grabs him, some romantic crap about the ultimate sacrifice… Well, I'm not immortal, after all, my powers can only heal so much… And I don't want to die. Not for him, not for anyone. I want it to be my decision, or at least a damn work related accident…

There's only one way to stop it. I have to kill him. But I could never do it when he's this close, even thinking it now, makes me hold him a little tighter. He smiles in his sleep, thinking I'm hugging him close because I love him so much… poor boy… he's innocent in this too, I know that. But I can't live my life in a prison, I can't live a lie… I have to break free.

The only way to do it is from a distance. A sniper-gun. I want to do it myself, not hire anybody… I owe him that much. A clean shot. He won't even notice it. My head is clearer the further away I am from him, but I can't leave. I've tried. In these years I've left Jump for three days at the longest and I was a wreck when I got back, until I was back in his arms. And that was with him_ knowing_ I was leaving for a while… I had his_ approval_…. I shudder at the thought… As if I, Deathstroke the Terminator, would need a teenager's approval for anything…

No… his death is the only thing that will set me free. I've known that for a long time now, but I keep putting it off… keep hoping he'll find someone _else _to focus on… keep hoping he'll let me go… I instinctively know that he won't, though. Robin is a devoted and faithful lover, just as he has made me… so he needs to die.

One thing is holding me back, however. Fear. I'm afraid I'll do something I've never done before…

I'm afraid I'll pull the trigger…

… and regret it.

_The End_

* * *

A/N: if you think that "bird-ladies" should be "fish-ladies" look "Siren" up on Wikipedia… the original ones, in the Greek mythology, are not mermaids, but women with wings… I just thought I'd mention that so I don't have to answer reviews about it… ;)

This was very interesting to write… sometimes, when I write fluffy Slade, I have this feeling that there's this little killer inside him, trying to get out, shouting in frustration… so I let him speak for once… ;) I think this story is rather tragic, for both of them… I'm kinda proud I wrote it, and I would never have gotten the idea if it weren't for the word 'Siren'…

Now I'd like you to imagine that Slade is wrong, that Robin really isn't this mythic creature, just a normal human being… interesting thought, huh? ;)


	11. 11 Hot And Cold

A/N: Merry Christmas **Higashisaru!**

**Warnings: **This is a nice, warm story (ha! Only I get that joke yet!). Try to ignore it if Slade acts a bit weird in places, okay? He says he needs to sometimes…

* * *

**Hot and Cold**

To have a white Christmas in Jump City was suspicious, but the whole of California covered in three feet of snow just over night… _that_, Robin suspected, was _criminal_.

The snow had completely shut the state down, even the Titans had trouble getting anywhere, and most of _them _could fly.

"Dude! It's cold!" Beast Boy complained and sneezed.

"Come on, just turn into a yeti or something, and shut up…" Cyborg, who was cranky because the oil, flowing through half his body, was as sluggish as the one in the T-car, which wouldn't start.

"Cy, we can't drive anywhere anyway, the roads are blocked by the snow," Robin tried to point out, but got such a glare that he stepped back. "Fine… fine… but don't come and cry to me when you find her rusting shell in a melting snow pile in spring…"

"I do not like this snow! It is not merry nor does it twirl or glitter prettily…" Starfire said, twisting her hands.

"Blanket of death."

"Thanks Raven, that's the spirit!" Robin droned sarcastically. "Okay, yeah, we all know something's wrong… the phone lines are pretty much fried thanks to all the emergency and not-so-emergency-'guess-what-it's-snowing-here' calls, the clods seems to mess up the satellite links… we need find someone with free access to a designated fiber-cable landline…"

"And who does?" Raven asked.

"Slade."

"Oh."

"Yeah, is he just gonna let you… you know… borrow it?" Beast Boy asked and then sneezed again.

"Maybe if you bring the gifts of hot chocolate and wooly jumpers?" Starfire suggested.

"Well, he's probably as stuck as we are…" Robin shrugged. "And Starfire, if you have that woolly jumper somewhere, I wouldn't mind it myself."

"What if he's the one _behind_ this?" Raven pointed out.

"I thought about it, but this isn't like Slade… besides, if he is, well… case solved!" Robin shrugged. "I want you all out there as soon as possible, clearing streets and helping people in need. I'm going to go see if I can dig up some clothes and then, Raven, would you mind giving me a ride to the docks?"

"Of course not, Robin," the empath nodded.

"Thanks… see you here in five. BB, I know you have a cold, but buckle up; we need you to clear the snow around the Tower. Star, help him, see if those star-bolts melts it. Cyborg… put a scarf on or something…"

* * *

Half an hour later Robin was dropped off on the pier, sinking almost to his chest in snow.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Raven asked, hovering in the air above him.

"I'm fine. People can be dying out there, stuck in their cars and in buildings… I'll deal with Slade. He might not even be here," Robin said.

"Optimist…" Raven muttered.

"Well, _one _of us has to be…" her leader grinned and waved as she flew off.

Fighting his way through the snow was harder than he had thought, but he didn't have to go far. The place he was heading for was disguised as a warehouse, but was actually what he had come to think off as Slade's 'office'. After helping them to defeat Trigon, although for selfish reasons, an uneasy kind of truce had struck up between the mercenary and the Titans. Robin still didn't trust the man further than he could throw him, but he had grown to feel a grudging sort of respect for him, instead of frustration and anger. This was the man's 'office' because this was where he was if he didn't mind being found by the heroes. He had several secret lairs as well, he had even hinted to as much once or twice, but Robin had no clue where.

The snow in front o the door was undisturbed. Robin suspected there were several ways in and out of the building, if only because he would have made sure to have a few extra himself, but no one had left or entered through_ this_ one since at least midnight.

Robin started to kick and dig his way down to free the door enough so he could try to pull it open. The snow had started falling at around ten pm, but didn't seem much more than a freak weather phenomenon at the time. Waking up this morning had been a shock. Robin remembered lying in bed marveling at having gotten a whole night's sleep without any alarms disturbing it… when he looked out the window he understood why. Only an idiot would be out in this weather.

"Only an idiot would be out in this weather," a voice suddenly told him. "Get in here already."

The door had opened. Inwards. Robin felt pretty silly.

Dragging half a ski slope worth of snow into the building, he waded in, nodding curtly to the man, hoping his blush would be written off as rosy cheeks from the cold.

"Funny weather we're having…" Slade said as he closed the door.

"I thought so too…" Robin said carefully. There was, after all, still a risk that Slade was the one to blame for it.

"Nice sweater. What is that? A white blood cell?" the man chuckled.

"Um… I think it's a snowman…" the teen shrugged. The sweater was homemade. By Starfire. It was a miracle it only had two arms and actually fit at all.

"It suits you. Take it off before the snow on it thaws and soaks you through. I'm busy in the lab, follow me."

Robin trudged along after the man, pulling off the sweater that was getting wetter by the second. It had been stupid to leave the tower without a water-resistant outer layer.

"It was stupid of you to leave the tower without a water-resistant outer layer," Slade supplied.

"Yes, I was just thinking the same thing. Our winter-stuff is in storage, though, and I thought it was urgent."

"Or you just wanted to see me… well, I'm flattered. There's a blanket over there. Take a seat."

Robin sighed. He had trouble getting around the man's way of interacting. It was easy enough when they were fighting, but now, most of the time, Robin didn't know if Slade was insulting him, being hospitable or ordering him about. It was the mask's fault really, or rather the _lack _of it. Slade still wore it in public but seldom in here, and when Robin could see every raised eyebrow, every twitch of the lips, every gleam in the single blue-grey eye, he found it harder to interpret the man's actual words, somehow.

He took the blanket, since he wanted it, and sat down on the appointed chair, also because he wanted to.

"So you noticed the snow-flakes then?" Slade said as he sat down himself and typed a few numbers in on the screen.

"Err… yeah… pretty hard not to?" Robin arched an eyebrow.

"So you haven't."

"What do you mean? The whole damn city is covered with the stuff! We sent BB out flying and he says it just goes on and on… it's all over the state!"

"Yes, but the snowflakes-"

"What's so important about-"

"Look."

The man put up an image on the screen of around ten snow crystals, magnified a thousand times. Robin glared at them and then, suddenly, his eyes widened behind his mask.

"See?" Slade said, just a bit smugly.

"They are all the same!" Robin gaped.

"Exactly. No pun intended," Slade said.

"So they are not natural…" Robin said to himself. He almost heard Slade open his mouth and waved his hand. "Yes, yes, yes, I get that this amount of snow in this climate can't possibly be natural, but this proves it."

"If you had bothered to check the snowflakes last night, you would have already known that," Slade pointed out.

"Who the hell thinks of checking snow-flakes! Well, yes, besides_ you_. And if you knew, why didn't you call us? Maybe we could have stopped at least Jump from being snowed in like this!"

"It wasn't my business…" the man shrugged. "Besides, I didn't know it would get this bad."

"I can't believe you… or wait… I _can_… this is very _much _like you. Well… I need to borrow your computer and study some satellite photos… I have to find out where this thing is coming from."

"You could do that… or I could just tell you?" Slade suggested.

"Slade!"

"_What?_ Do you want me to help or not? Make up your mind."

Robin glared at the man and then his shoulders slumped.

"Could you please tell me where the storm is coming from?"

"Certainly. All you had to do was ask," the man smirked. "The centre is here, " he continued, pointing at a map.

"Perfect. The mountains."

"Yes."

"Looks like I'll be going on a trip then…" the teen muttered.

"What, just you and your snow man sweater?"

"Yes, the Titans are needed here. It's still snowing and the whole state is in trouble. They can follow me when the main streets are cleared."

"I'll go with you."

Robin blinked.

"What?"

"Oh, I have a small hunting lodge up there, I'm worried about it…" the man shrugged. "Besides, this kind of technology is fascinating. I want to meat the one responsible."

"I already have an idea about that… and trust me, he's rather dull…" Robin snorted. "But sure… are you gonna _help_, though?"

"If asked…" the man said airily.

"I'm going to regret this… fine. Now… how the hell are we going to get there?"

"Let me arrange that. You go back and try to find something a bit less…_ jolly_ to wear… Be back in an hour."

"How about food? Water?"

"I have provisions. Just get your warmly clad ass here in an hour. Trust me."

"That's asking a bit much…" Robin snorted, but left anyway. He sent up an emergency flare, and within minutes he was picked up by Starfire.

* * *

One hour later Robin was back, dressed for the weather this time in a white ski-outfit and his regular belt. He also had a small backpack with some emergency supplies in it, just in case Slade forgot to pack sandwiches.

"Better," Slade said as he Robin dropped done beside him on a now partly cleared area of ground. The teen signaled to his ride, Raven again, that all was fine and then turned towards the man.

"That's how we are going to get there? A snowmobile?" the teen asked.

"A _modified _snowmobile."

"But there are not tracks and isn't the snow too loose?"

"Did I say modified?"

"Oh."

"We can't fly in this weather; the snow and the wind will put a stop to that, and I don't have a snowcat standing around."

"But you had a snow mobile?"

"Yes."

"In Califor- oh, why am I even questioning it? Fine! So what did you do to it?"

"Wider skis at the front will help in this snow, although the maneuverability suffers for it… also an amped up engine. The fastest snowmobiles can go at about one hundred and fifty miles per hour. This should reach two hundred and fifty."

"Should?"

"I've had an _hour_, Robin, I haven't had time to do a road test."

"Okay… good. If we freeze to death in a snowdrift I will blame you, though."

"It's more probable that we'll go over a cliff since it's almost impossible to steer…" the man let him know.

"Great. So… there's only one?"

"Again; one hour."

"Yes, yes, I'm still impressed, I promise…" Robin chuckled. "Are we ready then?"

"We are," Slade said and attached a covered sled that looked a bit like a ski box to the snowmobile. "Just one thing…"

"What's that? You have to pee?" Robin smirked.

The man, still unmasked, gave him a strange look.

"No, it's a bit more serious than that… The snow, because of it's consistency and shape of the flakes are actually pretty hard, and that's good. However, extra weight is not. So there's only enough fuel for one way. Once there, we have to stop this weather and wait for it to clear enough to call your team… or we will be walking home."

"Ah, yeah... wouldn't want to do that…" Robin agreed.

"Well," the man swung a leg over the seat of the vehicle, donning one of the two helmets. "Are you coming?"

"Yeah, I just…"

"You have to pee, don't you?"

"…Yes," Robin muttered and went inside to use the bathroom. At least he knew where it was from a very embarrassing case with a rampant food-poisoner. He didn't want to think about it.

* * *

It was tricky getting the snowmobile out of the city, as there were man-made snow banks everywhere, but as soon as they hit the main highways, which had been completely covered, it was smooth sailing, so to speak. The speed was incredible, especially as long as they could travel straight, and only a few hours later they were at the foot of the mountain-range. Slade stopped there and turned off the engine.

"Why are we stopping?" the teen asked, pulling the visor on his helmet up. He was very grateful for it or his face would have been frozen solid by now.

"Plan, eat… and I have to pee." Slade smirked and waded off into the snow for a few yards.

"Ouch… cold…" Robin snickered.

"You don't know the half of it… actually it's not_ terribly_ cold, is it? About 14 degrees Fahrenheit, I'd say…"

"The dashboard says ten… no, wait…_ minus_ ten… oh, it's in Celsius?" Robin said, leaning forwards to peer at it, just so he didn't have to look at Slade's back while he was… well….

"Yes, it was a Swedish model from the beginning," the man said. "Now… some soup and then you are going to tell me about your suspicions."

"Oh, I can do that while you cook…" Robin grinned and pulled off his helmet. He swung a leg over the side of the seat but remained sitting. "Damn, I'm stiff…"

"You liked it _that_ much?" the man chuckled, coming back from finishing his business.

"Very funny."

"Just as well… it was cold enough to take a piss, you would have frozen your ass off…" the man shrugged.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Think about it. But first, tell me about the suspect."

"Well, there's only one person I know who lives for these kind of things… Mr. Freeze."

"He's a Gotham villain, though, isn't he? What is he doing all the way over here?"

"Beats me," Robin shrugged. "I'm not sure it is him, of course, but the technology for this… well he has it, on a small scale… maybe he has just upped it."

"And his reasons?"

"He likes to make things cold."

"Oh. One of those. Hate those people." Slade growled.

"Huh? All villains are kinda nuts…" Robin said. "Present company excluded of course."

"Thank you. I meant something slightly different, though… let's say this guy had a thing for mammoths…"

"Mammoths?"

"Bear with me. He likes mammoths and he has discovered a way to bring them back, and so, because he's still an idiot, he decides that the pest place to recreate a suitable mammoth environment is California USA."

"Yeah… nuts!" Robin exclaimed.

"Yes, absolutely, _but_," Slade said and gestured to the mountain range in general. "This man, if you are correct, doesn't even have an _agenda_ .He just wants to be a pain in the ass… make others suffer for no reason at all. _Those_ people I really hate."

"I see… strangely enough it makes some sense… well, hopefully we'll run into a mammoth breeder instead…"

"That would at least be more interesting… always wanted to see a live mammoth…" Slade smirked.

"Oh god, you weren't talking about_ yourself_ where you?" Robin asked.

"Oh, no… and I would pick Siberia, anyway…" Slade told him as a matter-of-fact and started gathering some snow to melt over a small portable stove he had placed on a trampled up area.

"Are you sure the snow is safe to use?" the teen asked.

"As long as it's not yellow…" Slade chuckled.

"Urgh.."

"I tested it in the lab last night. I melted it, boiled it, refroze it… ran hundreds of chemical tests on it… it's just water. If anything it's much cleaner than regular snow."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Great!" Robin grinned, bent down, scooped up a little snow and put it in his mouth.

"Why in the world did you do that?" Slade asked.

"Because you said it was clean! I've always wanted to, but Alfred used to say it would give you worms."

"And you believed it?"

"I was nine!"

"You should be more worried about pollution."

"Well, it was done and it wasn't bad," Robin huffed and crossed his arms. "Could do with some flavor, though…"

"Like I said, there's some yellow over there…" the man smirked and gestured to the side of the road.

* * *

The trip from now on was slower but when they reached their goal they knew they were there. A giant mast supported by metal beams, leaning against it, rose towards the sky a mile or so ahead.

"We can't go much closer on this or someone might hear us," Slade said as they stopped. "How are you at skiing?"

"I'm okay."

"Get better."

Robin snorted as the man produced two pairs of skis and poles. The bindings were of the old, simple sort which you could use with a regular shoe or boot. Robin gave the man a look and he shrugged.

"As I said I have a hunting-lodge up here. We must have passed the road to it a few miles back, not that I could make it out in these conditions… I use both the skis and the snow-mobile when I go there in the winter. There's no great mystery to it, really."

"You could have said so from the start."

"Yes, but you were impressed…" the man smirked. "And now you just looked like I probably mugged two little old skiing ladies just before you came by."

"The thought _did_ occur to me…" the teen chuckled.

"I suspected as much. Now… ready?" Slade snorted and shrugged on a backpack he had gotten from the sled.

"The poles are a bit long."

"Of course they are, there mine. Don't break them."

* * *

Cross country skiing was harder than Robin remembered. Of course the skis were old fashioned, but he really couldn't blame _them_. He was more used to the downhill variety, though.

"Why do I have to go first?" he complained after a while.

"Because the sight of your ass when you ski is amazing," the man replied calmly.

"Well, maybe I want to look at _your _ass!" the teen snorted.

"Pervert. Stop sexually harassing me," Slade deadpanned. "Besides, you are lighter. If you fall through the snow I know it won't support me."

"I _knew_ there was some selfish reason…" Robin muttered.

"Well, they both are, really…" the man shrugged. "Besides, I had to make one up because I knew you would be upset about the other…"

"Damn right I would… wait… which one did you make up?" the teen asked suspiciously.

"Oh, don't be silly, Robin, you know which one," the mercenary said lightly. "Should we move on when?"

With Robin brooding they continued on.

"Slade, if you could take your eye of my ass for a moment, do you see the base of that thing? It's huge…"

"Relax Robin, you can handle it…" the man purred.

"Was that an innuendo again?" the Titan growled.

"What? Me? No, I'm much more straight forward than that… although how you knew about my size I have no idea… did you peek before?"

"I'm talking about the pole! The mast!"

"It has been called many things…"

"Slade!"

"Fine. Yes. I see the base. I'm not blind, I'm only half way there."

"Well, there's no sign of life. I say we split up and take a side each."

"Are you sure? That sounds like a hero-plan to me…"

"Well, I'm a hero, and it's _my_ mission. You're my sidekick, so just shut up and do as you're told…" the teen snorted.

"Heh… if that was how Batman treated you, no wonder you left," Slade chuckled. "Well, alright, fearless leader… just point me in a direction."

Robin ended up going right and Slade left. The base was absolutely massive and they could only see a part of it at once. It seemed to be made up by large sheets of metal, probably quickly assembled, but completely solid. The ground around the mast, or tower, was packed solid and as hard as asphalt, so Robin kicked off the skis as he snuck forward. He did it slowly, trying to pick up any signs of other human beings, but for quite a while everything just seemed cold and dead.

He stopped as he heard a voice. He had been right. It had been years since he had last heard the dry, cold tone but he wasn't likely to forget it.

"Keep it up! Unload everything!"

The teen edged his way around a snow-drift and saw a row of what he could only describe as some sort of spiky ice robots carrying boxes from a strange looking transport into the mast itself. The vehicle reminded Robin of a huge hovercraft resting on a rubber air-cushion, which would probably glide very quickly over the snow. Next to it stood Dr. Victor Fries himself in his cryogenic suit. Robin knew, of course, of the man's tragic past and how he had lost his wife, but, in his book, that didn't make it okay to freeze people. That bloody hurt.

"Well… no time to lose…" the teen muttered and reached for his grapple hook. He shot it at one of the large metal support-beams which ended far above the opening in the base. Taking to the air he immediately had a few exploding bird-a-rangs in his hands and let them fly as he soared forwards. The explosions stopped a couple of ice-bots, cutting them off at the knees, and got Mr. Freeze's attention.

"I'm here on behalf of the state of California," Robin smirked as he landed. "We want our climate back."

"Who are you!" the villain said, obviously stunned. The he took in the black hair, the mask, and the belt with the 'R' symbol. "Well, well, if it isn't Batman's brat… don't expect a warm welcome."

"Giving me the cold shoul- ah, hell, I can't do this anymore; I'm too old for puns. I'm just gonna kick your ass, okay?"

"You can try, little boy, but unless your daddy is here…"

"Oh, his daddy is here alright… just not the bat," a voice said behind the villain.

"You're not my daddy, Slade…" Robin muttered.

"Not yet, perhaps," the man leered.

"Looks more like your granddad," Mr. Freeze smirked.

"That does it, I do _not_ like you," Slade growled.

"Yeah, you should talk, baldie!" Robin snorted at the Gotham villain.

Some of the ice-bots tried to attack from behind, but Robin took care of them with a few more exploding bird-a-rangs, and drew his bo-staff.

"I'll give you one warning, Freeze… give up or- Hey!-" Robin somersaulted out of the way as a ray of ice hit the place he had just been standing. "You're supposed to at least let me finish first," he snapped.

"No time, little Robin. I'm about to turn this wondrous machine to full power! Within a few days this whole planet will be plunged into a new ice age!"

"Would that, in any way, include mammoths?" Slade asked.

"Of course not! Are you insane?" the ice man asked. "Wait a minute… Slade… Slade… You are _Deathstroke_ aren't you? I've heard of you! What are you doing helping this little wanna-be hero? You're one of _us_!"

Slade visibly shuddered.

"No. _I _would have included mammoths."

"You are a mercenary aren't you? Whatever the boy is paying you, I'll double it."

"Interesting... although with the world covered in snow, money wouldn't be worth much, would it…?"

"Fine. A high position among my men, then. You'll live like a king!"

"I'd rather die like a man…" the mercenary smirked and lounged.

Robin was busy fighting the ice-bots, and more of them were coming out from the tower. Fortunately they were easy to defeat, but their sheer number was a problem. An ice-ray shot just past his shoulder at one point, and he ducked and rolled.

"Keep that thing away from me!"

"That's what you always say!" Slade complained.

"That's it. Shoot him, Freeze, he needs to cool down," Robin yelled.

"I don't have time for you and your perverted banter," the bald man yelled and suddenly a wall of ice appeared in front of the man, shielding him from any attacks and leaving him a clear path to the base of the soaring structure. "In ten minutes I'll be at the top of the mast, and then nothing can stop me. This area for miles will be pretty cold then, I'm afraid. The blood in your veins will freeze, the very air in your lungs as well. Earth has never known cold like this, but now… it will!"

The man disappeared into the opening which closed with a definite sound.

"We have to get to him!" Robin yelled and started climbing the ice, using bird-a-rangs as hatchets. Slade, however, caught his foot and pulled him down.

"No, we need to leave."

"We can't get miles away from here in ten minutes!" Robin snarled, "And even then we probably won't survive long enough to stop him!"

"We don't _need _to get miles away, but we are much shorter on time. The mast will fall in about forty five seconds."

"What?"

"Oh, while you took your time, I hurried… planted a few timed explosives on the support-beams…" Slade shrugged.

"I have to see this!" the hero grinned in a rather bloodthirsty way.

"Yes, just one problem… I have no idea which way it's going to fall…" Slade said lightly.

"So… run?"

"Run."

They did. Robin, still with a sharp bird-a-rang in his hand, ran past the hovercraft and sliced the air-cushion completely open along the whole side.

"I'd like to see him use that now…" he grinned. "What about the skis?" he called to Slade.

"No time!" the man replied, and that really got the teen moving.

They got quite a distance before the first explosion rang out, moving through the snow on pure adrenaline, at least in Robin's case. They stopped to make sure the thing would fall, and not their way, and they were lucky on both accounts. Without the support beams the construction had all the chances of a single tree in a beaver habitat. The sound it made as it crashed was phenomenal.

"Yes!" Robin punched the air. "Should we go back?"

"Don't tell me you want to make sure that he's okay?" the mercenary groaned.

"Err… okay… but what about the technology? What if he can still use it?"

"Firstly, if it wasn't completely destroyed, it's at least heavily damaged, and there must be a reason for the mast itself; he must have needed to set it off high above ground. He _could_ still detonate something smaller down here, though, if his alive, so I say we better keep moving. As soon as the satellite reception comes back you can call your daddy and he can send in the Justice League. They should do some of the work once in a while."

"I thought _you _were my daddy?" Robin grinned.

"You bet I am. Now let's go."

The trek without skis was a nightmare. None of them where light enough to walk on the snow. Robin had it easier, following in Slade's path, but it was still a matter of tripping and sinking down to his knees every third step. The cold was starting to seep into his cloths too, and he almost pulled a boot off at one point, filling much of it with snow.

"Are we there yet…?" Robin muttered.

"We left the snow-mobile on the other side of that," Slade told him, pointing ahead to a thatch of low sapling-like trees.

"Fan_tas_t-"

"Shh!"

"What?"

"That noise, what's…? Run! Back the way we came!" Slade yelled and practically turned Robin around by his shoulders.

"Wha-" Robin started but then he heard it too: a low rumbling growing in strength. An avalanche!

At first Robin had no idea what Slade was so desperate to run to, but then he saw the outcrop of rock they had passed a while ago. Running didn't make him stumble less, though, and suddenly Slade was ahead of him. Just as the teen thought the mercenary would actually leave him behind the man grabbed his hand and more or less dragged him along. They reached the rock just as tons of snow rushed past on both sides and over them as well. For a split second Robin felt the masses grab him, trying to pull him along, but an arm around his waist kept him in place.

They had to dig their way out, but at least they were still alive.

When Robin reached the surface the whole world had changed.

"The trees are gone…" he said, looking stunned.

"Yes, I think we can pretty much forget about the snowmobile. If it's not halfway down the mountain by now, it's buried too deep," Slade said grimly.

Robin flipped open his communicator and checked his cell phone as well.

"Still no reception."

"The storm Mr. Freeze had managed to build up will disappear on its own, but it might take a day or two… and, who knows, there might have been technical damages to the systems as well…" the man said. "Keep an eye on the reception, but don't waste the battery."

"What do we do now?"

"I have a pretty good idea where the cabin is, I think we should head that way…" the man said.

"Wait, before you said you wasn't even sure where the road was…" Robin pointed out.

"Fine. I just lied. I have no clue, although I think I can pick out some land-marks. I know this area pretty well, even though it has just changed rather dramatically… besides, what choice do we have? We are still too close for comfort to the maniac, although I hope this avalanche buried his frozen ass… and I don't want to spend a night in the snow if I can avoid it."

"Well, it's getting late already… we better go then," Robin shrugged.

"I have an idea how to make it easier, but we need to reach the woods over there…" Slade said pointed across the snowy masses.

"Great, I love goals!" Robin grinned and soon they were off again. They kept quiet as Slade listened for more avalanches, but they reached the trees safely.

Slade put his backpack down carefully and rummaged around in it. This made Robin realize something.

"That thing was full of explosives?"

"Not full, but I kept it there, yes. Very powerful plastic explosives the military wish they could get their greedy little hands on."

"God… why would you even _think_ of bringing stuff like that?" Robin asked. He didn't like the thought that he might have been blown up by accident.

"Because I never go into a mission _under_-armed. And you would notice if I brought a machine-gun and probably bitch about it."

"Oh, thanks," Robin muttered. He knew the man was right, but he still felt a bit hurt.

"I meant that in the nicest possible way of course."

"Of course."

"Here. Most of our food might be gone, but I brought some energy-bars… nuts or raisins?"

"Nuts," Robin answered.

"I had a feeling you'd go for those…" Slade smirked.

Robin gave the man a look that clearly said 'I'm too tired for this', but then he brightened up.

"I forgot! I have hot chocolate!"

"You brought coco? What did you think this was? A picnic?"

"You won't complain when you get something warm to drink…" Robin muttered and dug through his own backpack. "Besides, Starfire insisted."

"She didn't make it, did she?"

"No, she only heated the milk. And it is _cow_-milk, I made sure… I took over before she started putting things in."

"Good initiative…" Slade smirked and took the mug Robin offered him. He sniffed it first, just to be sure, but then quickly drained it. "Not bad. Drink the rest of it and eat the bar. I'll be back in just a little while. Try to get some rest."

Robin nodded and watched Slade draw a knife from his belt before disappearing into the trees. The teen made himself comfortable in the snow. He had brought a foam pad to sit on, but wished he had found a thermo blanket as well. Still, the snow protected him from the biting wind and he settled down to catch his breath and wait for whatever Slade was going to do.

_Probably run down an moose and kill it with that knife_, Robin thought dryly.

When the man returned a while later he had a much less impressive catch in his hands, however; a bunch of fir branches.

"What are you going to do? Build a fire?"

"No, I'm going to make sure we can travel quicker… I'm making snow shoes," Slade said.

"Oh, brilliant!" Robin smiled, a bit embarrassed that he hadn't thought of that himself. On the other hand he was a city-brat, and things like these were very seldom needed on the streets of Jump.

"Thank you. You're making me blush," the man grinned, his eye glittering a bit, telling Robin that he actually _was_ pleased. Which made_ Robin _blush. Life just wasn't very fair. "We need something to tie it with, though, and I'd rather not sacrifice any clothes…"

"How about my jump cord?" Robin asked. "Would that work?"

"Yes, it would probably be perfect," Slade nodded.

"Great, I have an extra cord if the one in the in the grapple-gun snaps," Robin said and fished out a tightly wrapped package from a belt pocket.

Slade raised an eyebrow.

"And if it snapped… when would you have time to change it? As you would be plunging to your death at that moment, I mean, and the grapple hook itself will be out of reach?"

"… never thought of that. Thanks. Now I have something_ else_ to worry about…" the teen muttered while Slade sliced up the cord with his knife. He placed the small but dense branches, which were about as long as Robin's arm, in almost a hand fan shape and started tying them together, making sure they stayed spread out.

"Foot," he said and Robin pushed one of his feet towards the man, who grabbed it and started tying the make-shift snowshoe in place. Soon they were both set up and Robin took a first couple of careful steps. First he had to fight to get himself up to the snow surface, though, since he had been wading through it, and he gave Slade quite a few laughs. But as soon as he could start to walk, he grinned.

"They're working!"

"Of course they are."

"You know, you're a really handy sidekick to have around…" the teen chuckled.

"I thought I was your daddy?"

"You bet you are," Robin grinned.

Walking with their new gear was easier, but required a certain technique, and Robin snickered at the way they must have looked, probably resembling waddling ducks. Still, it was a long walk and the wind actually picked up a notch. It had stopped snowing for a while, and the teen had happily thought that that was the last of it, but now, as it grew darker, it started again.

Robin welt wet, cold and tired to his very bones. His gear was good, certainly, but made for a day at the slopes more than hours of trudging through snow, and he was getting tired.

"Can we rest for a bit?" he asked, even his voice sounding defeated.

"No… in these conditions it's too dangerous," Slade told him. "I don't want you falling asleep on me."

"I thought that was _exactly_ what you wanted?" Robin tried with a small chuckle.

"Not in the snow," the man chuckled back. "Come on, I recognize that cliff."

"Was that another lie?"

"Do you really want to know?"

"No… though I really hope it wasn't…"

Another hour passed and the light was almost gone. Both Robin and Slade had flashlights in their belts, but the small circles of lights only helped so much.

"How are you going to be able to spot any landmarks when it gets dark?" Robin asked.

"I won't be. But I think… yes. Those trees. I know where we are, it's not far," Slade told him, giving the teen some more energy. "Just up that hill over there. Are you up for it or do you want me to carry you?"

"I'm not a child," the hero snorted.

"No, but you're exhausted. I didn't mean it as an insult. Most ordinary humans would have given up and lying dead in the snow by now."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Robin smirked.

"I'm rather impressed with you, actually," Slade said, making the teen cough and look away. "Still, I don't want to look back to see that you have fallen somewhere, so if you want help, just say so."

"I'll make it. I promise." the teen nodded.

"Good. Well, come on, A hot fire and a hot meal doesn't sound too bad, does it?"

"Hell no, bring it on!" Robin grinned.

Even with his bravado and new found energy and hope there were several times during the last part of the walk where he really just did want to sink down on his knees in the snow, just for a little while. Just to rest. He didn't, though, and when they reached the top of the hill Robin expected to see the lodge Slade had talked about, but all he saw was a snowy forest.

"Where is it? If you lied to me, you son of a bitch, I'll swear I'll cut you open and spend the night in your hot carcass…" the teen growled.

"It's right over there… though it's covered with snow," Slade said and pointed.

"Oh."

"I'm of course glad you had thought about how to spend the night if we _hadn't_ found it…" the man said dryly.

"I wouldn't really have done it, you know…" Robin snorted.

"Really? I would have worn you as a hat if my ears got too cold," Slade shrugged.

"You would not!" Robin burst out laughing.

"Well, you're too small to be much use as anything else…" the man smirked.

"Oh, shut up or my foot is going to get really warm soon…" the teen warned.

They made it to the lodge, which was very small and had snow up over the windows.

"We have to dig for the door," Slade said, and removed his snow-shoes. Robin helped, using his sitting-mat as a hand shovel, and after about half an hour they could finally get inside.

The interior, however welcoming the sight was, was still cold and completely dark.

"There's no electricity here, so use the flashlight for now. I have to clear the chimney so we can light a fire," Slade said. "There is canned food in the cabinet over there and you'll find a small gas stove there as well. The matches are by the fireplace."

With those instructions the man left and a good while later Robin heard someone climbing on top of the roof. The teen was heating his hands at the pot where the soup he had found was starting to bubble when a rush of snow came crashing out of the fireplace, followed by the end of a wooden pole.

"Did it come through?" he heard Slade yell.

"Yeah it did! Come down from there, dinner is ready!" Robin called.

"I'll be right there, honey!" the man called back, and Robin sighed and shook his head… but not without a smile on his lips.

The small cabin was as simple inside as it looked from the outside. The sturdy stone fireplace was placed directly opposite the door. To the right the whole short end of the cabin was taken up by a built in bed which actually looked like a little room on its own, especially since there was a curtain to close that area off with. Robin knew that it was to preserve heat in the winter, as well as for privacy, and he wondered how old this cabin really was. He also wondered if Slade had put the curtain up, and, spotting a old faded flower-pattern in what he thought had been a grey-green fabric, he decided that, no, probably not. He took a closer look and decided that the man might not have put it up from the beginning but he must wash it now and then, because it wasn't dustier than anything else, only faded. He didn't know why, but that thought made him giggle a bit.

To the left there was the small 'kitchen' with a worktop and a few cabinets, most of them empty, as was the shelves and hooks on the wall. It was clear that Slade brought everything but an emergency supply back with him after his stays. A small table and two rickety-looking wooden chairs were pushed up towards the wall under the window, and that was pretty much it when it came to furniture.

There was another door next to the so called kitchen leading out to a storage area which was colder than the cabin itself so it was probably not insulated, but it was dry and there was a small stack of wood against a wall as well as several more or less empty shelves. Robin closed that door just as Slade opened the outer one.

"Look at you dragging in snow all across my clean floors!" Robin huffed.

"If this is what you call clean floors you might very well be the worst housewife in the world…" Slade smirked.

They shared the can of soup and Robin was pretty sure it was the best he had ever tasted. Slade went to start a small fire, just to get the rest of the snow in the chimney to melt, and to heat the whole thing up little by little so the temperature changes wouldn't cause the stonework to crack.

In the mean while Robin was really starting to feel the cold. Slade, though, was shedding clothes by the minute like he thought the room was warm and cozy now. Robin hadn't even taken off his gloves and was rubbing his hands together. His nose and face started to tingle too, and he touched it gingerly.

"Oh, fuck…"

"Now?" Slade asked from the hearth.

"My mask…"

Slade came up to him and lifted his face, studying it in the light from a flashlight.

"You're okay, but I think you better take that off. Here." The man stepped behind him and put his hands over the teen's eyes.

"Errr… Slade? We're probably the only people for miles, so 'guess who' isn't really a very exciting game," Robin said dryly.

"I'm warming your face," the man snorted. "It's important not to rub and I think my hands are warmer than yours are right now."

"Pfft… the _snow_ is warmer than my hands."

"Alright walk backwards with me to the fire…" Slade said and started to back up. "Now shrug off that jacket, it will only make you colder as it's wet," he said next and Robin did, tossing it away from the flames towards the door. "There. We are really close to the fire, just lean back towards me and bend your arms so you can put your hands in my pockets."

"Is this a game of 'let's see how many crazy things we can make Robin do'?" the teen asked suspiciously.

"No, this is the game of 'get Robin warm in the boring way'" Slade told him. The teen muttered something ugly under his breath but again did as Slade said. The heat from the man's chest and especially when he managed to get his hands down the pockets in his trousers, was just heaven. Slade warmed him better than the small fire did.

"Mm…" Robin mumbled and leaned back a bit more.

"Now, if you should happen to feel anything the in pockets feel free to play around with it…" the man purred in his ear.

"Slade!"

"Well, I thought I should try. If I had known about this I would have cut holes in them this morning."

"I bet you would have too…" Robin muttered, but didn't move.

"There, I think that should do it," the man said a while later and removed his hands. The teen almost winced in disappointment, but, yes, his mask didn't seem frozen to his skin anymore and he slowly peeled it off.

"Now let me just go and find an oil-lamp and I can enjoy those pretty eyes of yours…" Slade told him and disappeared into the storage room. Robin felt his face heat a bit more. The man had teased him about his eyes since the first time he had seen them, which had been an accident. Robin had been washing some chemicals off after an attack from some crazy person and Slade moved much too quietly.

Robin shuffled closer to the fire and reached out his hands towards it, trying to keep the regained warmth in them. Slade, on the other hand, thought housework was a better way of doing that.

"Here," he said, pushing a broom into Robin's hands, "Sweep the snow out the door so the whole floor won't get wet."

While Robin was busy with that and the warm light from a few oil lanterns spread across the room, Slade pulled the chairs close to the fire and put Robin's sitting pad on one of them, then he went to the bed, lifted out a folded blanked and the loose simple foam mattress. He leaned the mattress against the side of the hearth, which was warming slowly, and hung the blanket on the back of the chairs.

"There. They will still be a bit damp when we go to bed, but hopefully not too cold."

"Cozy," Robin said, just realizing that they would be sharing a bed. It should have made him nervous but the feeling was more like… anticipation. He beat down on it with all he had and went to check the reception again.

"Still nothing."

"Not surprising…" Slade said, "Creating this kind of freak weather-conditions… it might have very dire consequences to the climate. Freeze might get his wish after all."

"Yes… and no mammoths…"

"It's sad…" Slade sighed exaggeratedly and then smirked. "Well, at least it happened in winter, so hopefully the plant and animal life was somewhat prepared, and maybe the snow will go away quickly once it starts to melt. And then we just have to worry about flooding."

"Yaaaay…" Robin said sarcastically.

"I was trying to be optimistic."

"I know, and for you, you did a really good job…" the teen smirked.

"Come sit down, take your boots off and warm your feet…" Slade chuckled.

Robin did, but first he got rid of his trousers and sweater, leaving him in black thermal underwear.

"Ah, there's that body I like…" Slade purred. The man was dressed in a similar way now, and Robin felt like he should return the sentiment, but he didn't really dare.

The teen hugged himself, massaging his arms. It went against all logic to take clothes off when it was still this cold, but wet clothes wouldn't do him any good. Robin sank down on a chair and put his feet as close to the fire as he dared. Slade had fed it a little, and it was bigger now, spreading more wonderful heat. He glanced over at Slade who had produced a jar of Vaseline and was dabbing it on his lips. Instantly Robin felt how chapped his own was, and licked them.

"You want some?" the man asked, indicating the flat metal jar.

"Yeah, I-" Robin's eyes widened as the man's fingers pushed against his lips, spreading the jelly-like transparent cream. "I… uhh… thanks…" he mumbled afterwards and blushed to the roots of his hair.

"I just wanted to put something hot and slippery against your lips…" the man leered and placed the jag on the mantle. Robin got even redder.

They spent two hours in front of the fire as the room slowly warmed and the night settled outside. Slade melted snow in a kettle and made tea from a couple of forgotten teabags he had found and they shared a few of the sandwiches Robin had brought. As they didn't know how long they were going to have to stay, that would have to do for now.

Slade showed Robin a covered bucket to use if he didn't want to go outside, which Robin didn't, and put it in the storage, which might be cold, but at least not snowy, and then he announced that it was time to go to bed. There was only one blanket and no pillows and Robin got in first, as soon as Slade had put down the mattress.

"Sorry there are no sheets…" the man said, "I always take those home. The pillows too. One year mice got into them and when I came back, the whole place was covered in feathers."

"Hey, I don't care… it's the Hilton to me…" Robin smiled. He watched as Slade put the oil lamps out and put a few more logs on the fire to make sure it wouldn't go out in the middle of the night. As he came back the man kicked his own boots off and Robin scuttled back to give him room to climb in. The tingle in his stomach was back and he couldn't decide if he hoped Slade would make a move or not.

"Is it warm enough for you or do you need me to warm you up some more?" the man grinned as he got under the blanket with him.

Robin took a deep breath.

"I… don't think I'd mind…"

Even in the dim light from the fire Robin could see one of Slade's white eyebrows arch in surprise.

"Is that so?"

"Well… it's been a crazy day… why stop here?" the teen chuckled a little nervously. "Besides, if you send a bill for everything you've done today the Titans would go bankrupt… might as well thank you some other way…" Robin courageously shuffled a little closer in the already narrow space.

"Are you sure...?" the man said, but with as much conviction as a starving man being offered a steak.

"You saved the world today, Slade."

"You don't know that, we might have made it worse," the man admitted.

"Optimism! Try it!"

"Fine. I helped save the world. I'm a hero."

"Yes you are."

"I think I can live with that for a few days… it doesn't seem to hurt…" the man smirked.

"Good… I have a soft spot for heroes in long johns…"

"Now I'm jealous of Superman…"

"Just shut up and kiss me?"

Slade did.

Their chapped lips scraped a bit against each other, but it was a nice feeling, Robin thought, like nails scratching your back just hard enough, and it sent flashes of pleasure to his groin. They kept on kissing and Slade moved slowly on top of him. Robin gasped as he first felt the man's tongue, but only a moment later there was also the sensation of Slade's body resting against his. He spread his knees to give the man room and raised one of them, caressing the man's hip with his inner thigh. This was about as far as he had ever gotten with a guy. Speedy. The archer had been drunk and fallen asleep. The next day he hadn't remembered anything and Robin had thought it for the best… he loved the redhead as a brother first, and although he was curios, he thought it might ruin things if he went through with it. Now he didn't feel any kind of hesitation like that, though. Yes, he was nervous, a bit, but mostly excited, and it started to show.

Slade moved the kissing to the teen's neck, making him moan and clutch the man's arms when the flashes of desire turned into a fire. Robin raised his hips, grinding against Slade, and he couldn't help but notice that the man was interested too. Very interested. He groaned as the man moved back to sit up, but then he was helped up as well, and the teen understood that the man's aim was to get his top off. A moment later that goal was reached, and Robin shivered slightly as he was pulled against the other's now also naked chest.

"I wish I could take full credit for these…" the man purred and ran his fingers over Robin's rock hard nipples. The teen moaned softly and let up a small cry as hot lips latched on to one of them.

"Oh… _god_ Slade… mmm…" In the dancing light from the fire, Robin, on his knees, arched his back, his head lolling back as well, to let Slade have free range of his chest. When Slade abandoned the nipple to head for the other the cold air rushed back and it felt like the sensitive nub froze in an instant. "Ah! It… It almost hurts… but… so good…" the teen tried to explain.

"I'm going to make you feel so much better…" the man promised. "Just you wait…"

"Don't wanna wait…" the hero pouted teasingly. "Let me show you why…" The teen crawled up into the kneeling man's lap and kissed his chest. Now Slade got to experience what Robin just had, and hissed. Robin also boldly shoved a hand down the man's long underwear.

"Pushy, aren't you?" the man chuckled.

"M-hmm… the name's Robin, haven't we met?" the teen grinned cheekily.

"Yes, I think I remember you…" Slade smirked. "I don't remember you having your hand there before, though."

"Me neither… and trust me… I wouldn't have forgotten…"

"Plan to do anything with it?"

"Who's pushy now?" Robin chuckled but moved down a bit so he could reach better and actually 'do something'. He pulled at the elastic waistband until he got the pants down enough and the man's length sprang free.

"Eager little thing…" Robin smirked.

"Yes you are," Slade chuckled.

"Oh… bad choice of words… I wonder if the cold air has the same effect on this…?" the teen asked himself and leaned forwards. He licked the head carefully not sure if he would like it, but he wanted to very much. The very thought made him so hot he almost whimpered. The taste was salty and the scent of the man spoke of their hard day, but Robin didn't care, quite the opposite. He pushed the man back against the foot-end wall of the bed and went to work. It was a thrill having his tongue glide over the now wet tip's smoothness while his hand was wrapped firmly around the shaft, sliding the foreskin up and down. He tickled the tip of the head a bit, poking the slit and then paid attention to the back of the glans, licking the arrow shape there like a lollipop.

"Fuck… Robin…" Slade groaned.

"Yes, you'll get to…" the teen snickered. "I just want to play a bit more with you first."

"I think I'd better get you under the blanket before you catch a cold," the man said.

It _was_ cold, but Robin had forgotten about it. His arms and legs were covered in goose bumps, though, and he chuckled regretfully.

"I guess this isn't exactly the time and place for discoveries, huh?"

"Not the time, perhaps, but it's definitely the place… just give it a few more hours to heat up properly," Slade said soothingly. "Now, let me tuck you in…"

It was Robin's turn to be pushed onto his back and the blanket soon covered him and the man again.

"But… we're not going to stop, are we?"

"Not if you try to stay under the covers like good boy…" the man leered.

"Yes daddy," Robin blinked innocently back.

"Fuck, kid, you have no idea what you do to me…" the man muttered as he disappeared under the covers.

Robin laughed, a sound that soon turned into a moan as the man pulled down his bottoms and seemed to swallow him whole.

Robin had always pictured that it would be fantastic to be on the receiving end of a blowjob. He was wrong. Fantastic didn't even begin to describe it. Where he himself had dabbled and experimented, Slade seemed to know exactly what he was doing, and that involved torturing Robin as much as he possibly could, bringing him to the brink and back so many times the teen's body turned into a furnace in the chilly room.

A saliva slicked finger pressing into him was the final blow, though, there was nothing Slade could do to hold Robin's climax back now, although, to be fair, the man didn't appear to try.

"Oh… why… why did you make me come?" Robin complained. "Now I'm just going to fall asleep…"

"The hell you are," Slade warned him. "Just stay here and stay awake." he continued and got out of the bed.

"Well, I'm not going out in the snow, but I can't promise about the other thing… I always fall asleep straight away… it's compulsatory…" the hero mumbled and stretched leisurely.

"Then you have had bad lovers…" the man snorted and slid his bottoms completely down.

"My hand resents that statement," the teen smiled.

Robin's smile turned into a grin when he saw the man straighten slightly and tilt his head just a little bit as he understood what Robin's words meant. The teen's heart started beating faster as Slade's fire-lit, naked body suddenly looked a bit more… predatory. Maybe it was the glittering teeth that did it.

Slade picked something up from on top of the fireplace mantle, and the scrape of metal against the stone told him that it was the jar of Vaseline. He didn't have to wonder what it was for.

Slade walked back the few steps to the bed in no apparent hurry. He seemed intent on enjoying the moment. Robin swallowed as his eyes lowered to the man's still very eager cock, which head glittered from saliva and precum. As the man stopped in front of the bed Robin raised the blanket, inviting him back in under it. He wasn't grinning anymore, he was deadly serious. This was no joking matter… this was… _important_. Not only because it would be his first time, although that of course was an occasion in itself, but it would be with _Slad_e. When he had woken up this morning he had had no inclination towards sleeping with the man. He had, once or twice, thought of him as handsome, even sexy, but he was still _Slade_… You didn't go and get a crush on Slade, it was just not done! Somehow the intense hours until now had changed something… and Robin was pretty sure it was a good thing. A very good thing.

Slade seemed to sense it too as he slid in next to the teen and kissed him again. It was a long kiss, but soft, almost searching for an answer Robin provided by winding his arms around the man's neck, pulling him closer.

"It's okay… I need you… I want you…" Robin whispered as they paused for breath.

The man only nodded and caressed the teen's hips first, before going down between his thighs, urging Robin to spread his legs.

The teen jumped a bit as a cold blob of Vaseline was pushed against his opening a little bit later. It warmed quickly, though, as a finger pressed into him. It slid in fairly easily and Robin felt his body hum with the new sensation.

"Feel good?" Slade asked quietly.

"M-hmm… yeah… it does…"

"One more?"

"Yeah… UUuggh…. yeah… that's… mmm…I'm okay… feels… really weird…" Robin almost chuckled.

"It's about to get weirder…" the man grinned and added a third finger.

Slade's fingers were hard and the teen could feel his muscles fighting them, but they were flexible as well and he willed himself to relax to help them go deeper. Lifting his hips a little gave Slade a clue to what he wanted. As the fingers curled inside him Robin felt like he got an electric shock, which melted all the strange discomfort away.

"Now! Before I come again! Don't make me come again already or I'll swear to god…" the teen hissed.

"When you put it like that…" Slade chuckled and rolled on top of him.

"You're _such_ a good sidekick…"

"Don't… I didn't need that image in my head…"

"What?"

"Because you used to be a sidekick… to Batman…"

"YUCK!"

"Exactly."

"Well… at least that picture bought us some more time… I'm not exactly close anymore…" Robin snickered. "We… are you gonna be a good _daddy_, then, and fuck me?"

"Now that's better…" Slade purred.

Cock turned out to be better than fingers. _Bigger_, but better. Or was that bigger _and_ better? Robin wasn't sure. After the head popped in it was like his body screamed that it wanted more, so Robin joined it, winding his legs around the man's hips so he could pull himself up to meet the slow, careful, thrusts.

"Slade, I mean this in the nicest possible way…" Robin panted after a while. "but could you fuck me like the selfish bastard I know you can be? Please? Fuck me like you just don't care…"

"One whore-treatment, coming up…" the man growled, his voice giving away how pleased he was.

Robin gasped as the man shifted, pushing the teen's knees up to almost his ears and then pulled back.

"Ready?"

"Errr… maybe… maybe you like this whore just a_ little_ bit?" Robin asked.

"I liked how _cheap _he was," the man smirked and pushed in again, hard. Robin's gasp didn't even have time to leave his chest before the next thrust, and soon his ankles were hooked over the man's shoulders and he was being pounded mercilessly. Or _almost_ mercilessly. Robin _did _notice that the man made sure to find the perfect angle. What worried him was that he thought it was very sweet. He better not let Slade know that… Every stroke was perfect and then Slade shifted so he could curl a hand around Robin's length as well, pumping him at the exact same rhythm.

"I'm… I'm gonna…" Robin warned the man a few moments later and then arched, coating his own stomach and Slade's hand with shot after shot with cum. The high he was feeling just stretched on as he felt Slade's cock swell and fill him the next moment, creating a new, smaller climax which only produced a few, sad couple of drops, but shook his whole body.

Slade carefully pulled out, lowered the teen's legs and used his own top to clean them up.

"Well… was it as good for you as it sounded?" the man purred in Robin's ear as he settled behind him, spooning the teen and making sure the blanket covered both of them. Slade didn't get an answer, however. Robin was already asleep.

* * *

"You are very bad at post coitus…" was the first words Robin heard the next morning as he stretched and yawned.

"Huh?"

"You fell asleep." Slade, lying next to him, reminded him.

"Sorry… it wasn't because of boredom…" Robin smiled sheepishly. "I told you; I cum and then I just nod off."

"So maybe I should fuck you in the morning instead?" the man suggested, pulling the teen closer.

"Maybe you should…" Robin agreed with a grin. "Hey, it's warm now!"

"Yes, keeping the fire going was a rather good idea…" the man said dryly.

"Wise ass…" Robin snorted.

"Sore ass…" Slade chuckled and grinded his morning erection against the very thing.

"Mmm… not _too_ sore though?" Robin said hopefully.

"Glad to hear it…"

* * *

Robin didn't fall asleep this time, but he got hungry and they shared yet another can of soup.

"What is it with you and soup?" the teen chuckled.

"It's convenient," the man shrugged. "And it's a good filler…"

"I know what's a good filler," the teen leered.

"Keep that up and you're going to perish from over exposure to sex before we are rescued…" the man grinned.

"Wonderful way to go… let's keep that as a last option if things seem to go to hell," Robin grinned. "Oh, speaking about that…" he said and reached for his communicator and phone which were lying on the table between them. "Damn… still nothing… So, what do we do now?"

"We need more wood, no pun intended," the man added as Robin snickered. "I have a larger pile out back, so we'll get that in first as most of it needs to dry."

"How about other houses? Roads?"

"No one lives anywhere close to here, and unless, by some miracle, the closest main road has been cleared, it's still an hour's walk from here… You could try climbing a tree or cliff to see if you can get a signal, though…"

"I'll try that this afternoon… better give it some more time. At least we have food… for about a week if we're careful."

"Two weeks. I don't have to eat that much as long as there's water, and we won't run out of that," Slade gestured and gestured towards the snowed-over window.

"I can't let you starve, you won't have the energy to fuck me!" Robin grinned. "If we don't have a signal in a few days, you can go out and catch a deer or something.

"Yes, no problem," the man snorted.

"In this snow? Probably not," the teen shrugged.

"You might be right. But let's live and let live for a bit, shall we?"

"Who are you and what have you done to Slade?" Robin smirked.

* * *

The day went by without a signal, but it stopped snowing and the clouds seemed to be thinning. The next morning Robin called out that he had two bars on the phone and the communicator seemed to be online as well, although it lost the connection easily. He climbed the closest thing, the cabin, and made the call.

"They are coming!" he announced as he came back into the warmth. "Batman has sent Superman to deal with the mast, and Starfire and Beast Boy are coming to pick us up."

"Did you tell them that this was my cabin?" Slade said, suddenly a bit guarded.

"No…" Robin thought the conversation over. "No, I said we were safe in a cabin and just sent them the coordinates."

"Good. Could we say that this was just a random cabin we happened to find? I'd rather keep this place to myself."

"Of course, I won't say anything. I'll pretend this place doesn't exist…" Robin smiled, knowing about the need for privacy.

"Actually," the man smirked and pulled the teen close, "I was thinking of spending New Years here… Most of the snow will probably be here still, as it's colder in the mountains, but there will be better food… and equipment… and sheets… want to join me?"

"Weeeeell… we_ did_ carry all that firewood in…" Robin grinned. "Yes… Yes, I'd love to. The sheets won me over."

"You'll get your own blanket as well."

"No... no that's one thing I don't want," Robin snickered. "I'd much rather share."

"That's settled then…" Slade looked very pleased with himself, or maybe even… happy? Robin smiled and rose up on his toes to kiss him. He doubted he would miss the Titan's New Year's party at all…

_The End._

* * *

A/N: the idea from **Higashisaru** for this one was very simple: "Slade and Robin in a cabin in the middle of a blizzard and there is only one blanket. Fluffy, not dark." I could have written that in four pages… but it ran away with me… Damn, I should learn that I don't ALWAYS have to have a damn REASON for them to end up in a cabin together, I can just PUT them there… but the whole story just kinda seduced me… so… yeah… a bit over twenty pages instead… -grin- I hope it made you smile and go "aww" a bit… and I'm sorry for Slade's mammoth-obsession… I think he just wanted to make Robin laugh… you can go "aww" again now if you want to… that's better than you going "GOD I HATE WHEN Slade IS OOC!"… so I'm hoping for an aww…. ;)

Oh, and if you also could ignore all the technical and geographical stuff in this story it would be great, because if my research supports any of it, it's more or less sheer luck. I hope it still felt real… just don't examine it. Thank you. ;)


	12. 12 Arrangements

A/N: Merry Christmas **Tinclay!**

**Warnings: **Yes, I know it's Tinclay who came up with this idea, and she can be a fan of the REALLY dark, but not this time, so there's no strong warning on this...

The genre is like… a "what if" set a few years in the future after canon Teen Titans, so more "what if" than AU, if you know what I mean… I'll let you discover the rest yourself.

* * *

**Arrangements**

It had been stupid to get out of the wrecked car and run straight into the forest, but what choice did he have? Robin had seen Slade behind the wheel of the other vehicle before it forced his own down into the ditch, and he couldn't let the man find him. He had stayed hidden for three months, ever since that phone call. At first he was simply laying low, but then he started to hear rumors… people were looking for him… and if they caught up with him…well, that wouldn't be good. And now Slade had.

Robin pushed himself into running faster. The man was a hunter, a master tracker, but if he could reach a road, then maybe- He had been running for over an hour after all, maybe he had gotten away?

A large shape suddenly landed on the ground in front of him, and Robin threw himself back in a sliding halt, landing him on his back right between Slade's spread feet.

"Hello, Robin. I'm sorry, but I was getting tired of playing with you…"

"R-Robin? Who's Robin? I'm Dick, You must-" the teen tried. He was dressed in a pair of black jeans and a grey hoodie, after all, his uniform long left behind.

"Dick Grayson, yes, I know. And I do recognize you without your mask, my boy, even though it's been a while… how old are you now? Eighteen? Nineteen?"

"Eighteen," Robin muttered before kicking up his legs, hoping to hit the man in the balls. Slade was quicker, however, and moved to the side. Robin was up and running again in an instant, but Slade really had gotten tired of playing and the teen found himself tackled to the ground, face down in the dirt, only seconds later.

"There." The man was sitting on Robin's thighs, holding his arms bent against his back. "I'm guessing you won't come quietly?"

"The hell I will! Let me go, Slade, right now!"

"I am a bounty-hunter, and you have a prize on your head… a rather big one… It would be a poor career-choice to just let you run along."

"I don't fucking _care_ about you career!" the teen snarled, wriggling helplessly under the man's weight.

"Or your own, as I understand… or minding your language… you have really slipped from the upstanding Bow Wonder, haven't you? Why did you leave the Titans, Robin? And the whole hero-community? _That_, I must say, surprised me…"

"If I tell you, will you let me go?" the teen growled.

"Doubtful."

"What? You've never wanted to just leave? Never felt you've just had enough? Whatever we do people keep dying and killing!"

"Ah, I see… so you gave up?"

"I just wanted to live a normal life for a bit, is that too much to ask?"

"Others might call it cowardly."

"Fuck you!"

"I said others. You're still just a kid, you should have fun, not have the weight of the world on your shoulders…"

"So you'll let me go?"

"No."

"But-!"

"Just because you're a kid doesn't meant you get too many second chances," the man said and Robin felt his grip shift and then a length of rope was twisted around his wrists. "My client might be a nasty piece of shit, but he has paid half in advance… it's nothing personal, you know… I'm just doing my job." With that Robin was pulled to his feet. "There. This will do. I left the cuffs in the car, I'm afraid, but we're heading straight back there… come on."

Robin didn't want to 'come on'. If he went with Slade his life would be over. He threw his weight at the man and again managed a few steps before his arm was grabbed.

"That's it. I'm putting a leash on you…" the man growled. Robin felt the rope around his wrists tighten as it was pulled upwards and then it was looped around his neck. The man secured it there, leaving him with a long lead, which he tugged at.

The teen couldn't pull at his arms without choking himself, and the strain on them was already beginning to hurt. Robin glared at the man who just calmly dusted his blue jeans and simple, white shirt off, before turning back towards the way they'd come.

The ex-hero almost gagged when a harsh pull on the lead urged him to follow. He tugged back, even though it hurt his neck, and felt the rope tighten some.

"The knot will let you cause just a little bit of trouble before it strangles you… once it tightens it won't let up," Slade informed him. "Every time you decide not to behave, you will have a bit more trouble breathing…"

"Fucking psycho!" the teen snarled, but stumbled along, the rope chafing his skin.

"I was told to bring you back in once piece, but that doesn't mean you have to be _comfortable_. Or even unhurt. My client knows that, in this business, accidents happen. I would advise you not to cause one."

Robin's eyes narrowed but he followed the man for now. It was pretty clear to him that he couldn't outrun Slade in the forest, but maybe he would have better luck with a car.

* * *

Back at the vehicles, the road was still deserted. The teen wasn't surprised; he had kept to the back roads in the hope of not getting discovered, but that had proved to be a major mistake. He doubted Slade would have tried to cut him off on the main highway… on the other hand, he wasn't _sure_.

He was pulled along to the man's car and held tightly as Slade retrieved a pair of handcuffs from the glove compartment. He was then pushed roughly against the hood of the car while Slade, being careful, snapped the cuffs on before removing the rope. Robin hadn't counted on that and tried to stomp on the man's foot as the rope fell away.

"Bad boy," the man growled and slammed Robin's forehead into the hood, making the teen go limp and see stars for a moment. The next thing he knew he was sitting in the passenger seat while Slade had left the car to go through Robin's own.

The ex-hero looked around. There wasn't any door handle on the inside of his door, but there was on the driver's side. Just getting out of the car, however, wouldn't do any good; Slade would just catch him again. The teen was limber though, and rose up on his feet, his neck and upper back pressed against the seat, and then, quickly, slid his cuffed hands down, bending until he could tug them over his ass, down to the crook of his knees, and then getting his legs free. Now he was still cuffed, but his hands were at the front. This was a good thing, since he had discovered that Slade had been a very sloppy mercenary and left the keys in the ignition as he went after him.

He glanced back, but the man was still busy removing any identifying items, like his bag and other personal belongings, from his car. Robin pushed himself over in the driver's seat, thanking any listening deities that it was an automatic, and turned the key.

The car jumped forwards, but Slade reacted almost instantly. Desperately Robin knew that he only had one option right now; he needed Slade down. He put the car in reverse and slammed down on the accelerator.

The back end crashed into the man, and Robin saw him fall backwards before he returned the car to drive and had the wheels spinning as he took off.

Robin thought he was safe until the back window crashed in and an arm wound around his neck an instant later.

"You should have told me you wanted to drive…" the man said dryly.

"Let me go, or I'll crash it!" the teen croaked out, putting his foot down on the gas.

"Let's make a bet on who will get hurt the worst…" the man chuckled in his ear.

Robin was seeing spots by now, his lungs burning in their need for oxygen. His hands couldn't really hold the wheel anymore, and the last thing he saw before he passed out was a bunch of trees coming towards them.

* * *

When Robin woke up he was back in the passenger seat, his neck again secured to his hands by a length of rope. There was a smell of blood in the air, and both his own hoodies and Slade's arms seems covered with the stuff. No wounds, though.

"We… didn't crash?" he mumbled, his voice hoarse.

"You're still alive, aren't you?" Slade's cold voice said from his left. "Pull a trick like that again, though, and you will spend the rest of this trip tied and gagged in the trunk."

"Can't blame me for trying…" the teen muttered.

"Oh, yes, I can."

"You don't understand, if you bring me to him-"

"I have no interest in what will happen to you, so don't bother. As soon as you are in his hands, my work is done. It's up to you how broken you want to be when you get there."

Robin clamped his teeth shut, eyes burning. He would get out of this. Slade would have to stop the car sooner or later, after all.

It turned out to be sooner, as, when they got closer to a small city, the man turned into a parking lot next to a gas-station and a small used car-plot.

He got out, walked around the car and opened the door on Robin's side.

"Here you go, little lady…" the man smirked.

"Go to hell!"

"Oh, I'm planning to…" the man grabbed his arm and pulled him out. To Robin's surprise he released the rope around his neck, but only to pull the teen's hood up until it covered his face. "This is strictly a favor. I don't think you would want people to recognize you, especially as you are very much wanted in the underworld at the moment. Someone else might feel inclined to cash in, and, trust me, I'm a gentleman compared to most of my colleagues out there…"

"Sure you are…" Robin growled, but the man was right, he didn't want people know he was here, because that would put more on them on his trail when he managed to escape.

"Can I help you, Sir?" a voice called to them from across the parking lot. Robin glanced up under his hood and saw a man with a lowered shotgun coming out from the gas station.

"Yes, Sir. I'm Slade Wilson, bounty hunter. Here's my ID and bounty hunter license. This one," he said and shook Robin by the arm, "is a nasty little piece of runaway drug addict I'm bringing back home to his poor mommy and daddy. The little bastard managed to wreck my car, though, so I'm looking for a new one. I'll pay in cash."

"Oh… err… yeah…" the man with the shot gun. "My brother's in the yard, he'll set you up real quick…"

"Thank you. In the mean while would you mind keeping an eye on the kid?"

"I can do that… you'll need some gas for the car, won't you?" the man said, the hint very obvious.

"Gas, refreshments… and I'm always generous with tips," Slade said smoothly.

"Well, he won't cause me any trouble, trust me on that!" the man said, cheering up even more.

"Much obliged. If he tries to run, shoot him in the legs," Slade said and walked off.

Robin weighed his options again. He tried shuffling a bit, but that gun came up a bit too quickly for comfort. He didn't know if the man would actually shoot him, but even so, there was no one else around, as this area didn't seem to exist of much more than run down industrial sites. If only he could get Slade to release his hands…

Not long thereafter, Slade rolled out of the lot behind the wheels of his new purchase. A man who looked quite a bit like the guy with the gun shoved ut at the gate, waving and smiling after him. As promised the bounty-hunter filled the new car up with gas and then grabbed Robin's neck and brought the teen with him into the small convenience store. He picked out a large assortments of snacks, soft drinks and water, paid much more than they were worth and left with the store attendants promise of silence, although that might not be worth much. Just as they were about to leave, Robin got an idea.

"I have to use the bathroom."

The attendant showed them to a door at the back, and Slade escorted him in.

"What do you need to do?" he asked.

"Pee," Robin grumbled. "Just unlock the cuffs and give me a bit of privacy, alright?"

"With that window right there? I don't think so," the man snorted. Instead he led the teen up to a battered-looking stainless steel trough-style urinal and started to unbutton his jeans.

"No, stop! What the hell are you doing?" Robin yelled and tried to back away.

"Let me put it like this…" the man smirked. "Do you really need to go?"

After glaring at the man for a moment the teen looked away.

"I thought not. When you do, just ask again," the bounty hunter leered and buttoned the top button again. "There," he said patting the front of the teen's jeans. "All safe and sound…" The man took a moment to wash up. The blood, the teen realized, must come from cuts made by the back windscreen, but the man's healing abilities had taken care of them.

Robin was still blushing fiercely as Slade led him out again and placed him back in his seat.

* * *

They drove in silence for a few hours. Slade now and then reached for a snack or a drink, but didn't offer anything to Robin. The teen didn't ask either, although his stomach was grumbling, because he knew it would mean being handfed. After a while he was starting to feel the effect of a filling bladder however, but did his best to stop himself from squirming. When sweat began to break out on his forehead, though, he knew it was either ask or piss himself, and he had a feeling the man wouldn't let him change.

"Slade, I need to go… for real…" he mumbled dejectedly.

"I was wondering if I would have to put you in diapers," the man smirked. They were in the countryside again and Slade pulled into the side of the road. Robin stepped out of the car without being prompted to this time and followed the man to a cluster of trees. Slade reached for the front of his jean again and Robin stepped back.

"Please, couldn't I-?"

"You broke two of my ribs when you backed into me," the man shrugged. "I can be a nice guy when I want to be, but I don't think you have deserved it."

Having to take a leak with someone else holding his dick, was one of the hardest things Robin ever had had to force his body to do. It hurt by now, though, so he made himself relax. As it was all over, quite a long while later, which Slade commented on, the man shook him off and tucked him back in. Robin couldn't bring himself to meet the man's eye for half an hour after that.

It was getting late but the man showed no signs of stopping. In the end Robin had had to ask for some water to quench his thirst, and the man had held a chocolate bar for him to eat as well. Humiliating as it was, Robin knew that he would need the energy.

Not until it had gotten completely dark did Slade pull up at a motel. Robin knew what their final destination was and also that it was almost a whole day's drive to get there so he was grateful for an opportunity to stretch his legs… and to escape. As long as the car was rolling he didn't have a chance. Slade tied him to the car seat while he went in to secure a room, and no matter how much Robin tried, he couldn't get out of the ropes in time. He had managed to loosen them just a tiny bit, so if he just had had an hour instead of mere minutes…

The room had a double bed and Robin was forced down on it, his feet got bound together and then Slade ran a rope from his tied ankles, down at the foot side and then up again, threading it through one of the gaps in the wooden headboard and securing it to the teen's neck.

"Try not to fall out of the bed or you'll strangle yourself. Oh, and I almost forgot…" The man produced a ball-gag from a small bag and Robin's eyes widened.

"No way you'll AARRGGH!"

It was obvious that the man had done this before, as he pressed the teen's cheeks into his teeth until the pain made Robin give in and open his mouth. The ball was pushed in instantly, behind his teeth, and secured with sturdy straps behind his head.

"UUHHH! OO-OHGHH!" Robin yelled behind the red ball.

"Yes, keep that up… people will think we are having much more fun in this room than we are," the man smirked.

The teen blushed and glared at the implication. He was on his side on the bed and uncomfortable as hell.

"Now be a good boy while I'll go out and get us some dinner, and I might let you eat it by yourself…" Slade said gave the teen's ass a sharp smack, maybe in warning of what might happen if he didn't behave.

Robin managed a little snort, but that was all, and Slade soon disappeared out the door, leaving him alone after turning the lights off.

The teen lay in the dark, his arms hurting like hell by now. Life was not exactly good at the moment. He moved his legs a bit but the rope around his throat instantly tightened. The mattress smelled funky and the teen thought he heard the faint scratches of bugs running over the floor. He closed his eyes, settled down, and waited.

"No strangled former heroes I see. Good. Guess you have earned the right to feed yourself then…" Slade said as he came back half an hour later with a bag smelling of hamburgers and fries.

He helped the teen shuffle up into a sitting position by keeping the rope at his neck slack, and then unlocked the cuffs from the teen's right hand, securing the left to the headboard for now.

When he removed the ball gag Robin had to fight an urge to spit the man in the face, and, judging by the look the man gave him, Slade knew exactly what he was thinking, and smirked.

The man had brought him a Happy Meal, which was of course insulting as hell, but Robin ate it like it was a gourmet's wet dream. Slade then shackled his hands again, despite the teen's protest and went to take a shower. Robin was very careful not to ask for one, because he knew how _that _would end.

When the man came back into the room he had changed into a fresh pair of jeans and a t-shirt instead of the bloodied shirt.

"I don't have to tell you a bedtime-story do I?" he asked.

Robin didn't even dignify that with a glare. Slade had left the ball gag off, but it was still on the bedside table, readily handy if Slade thought he needed it.

"Fine, I'll just tuck you in then," the man chuckled and pulled a blanket up to the teen's neck, ignoring the fact that Robin still had his shoes on, before getting into the bed beside him. "There. I pride myself on knowing that everyone I've shared a bed with, have had an enjoyable time…"

"Then untie my hands, my arms hurt!" the teen growled.

"Maybe for a bit tomorrow. Good night, Robin."

The former hero sighed. It would be a long night.

He managed to fall asleep eventually, but when he woke up he groaned in pain, his whole body stiff, and he must have kicked during the night because the rope around his throat was tighter than ever.

"Slade… please…" he gasped.

"Morning sunshine… ready for everything the day will bring?"

Robin paled a bit when he thought of what this day _would_ bring if he couldn't get out of it. He decided to try a new, although slightly desperate, tactic.

"Whatever you are getting paid, Slade, I'll match it. Double it even. You know I'm good for it, I'll just transfer the money and you can let me go!"

"It's no big loss that you quit being a hero with work-ethics like those…" the man tutted. "I know you are good for it, but that's not the point. I never take another mission before finishing the one I'm working on, and least of all from the_ target_."

"I never thought I'd hate you for your morals…" the teen muttered. "But I was to be alive right? Mind loosening the rope a bit…? Normal people need air, you know…"

"That's right, they do…" Slade chuckled. "And breakfast too, I presume. Eat quickly, I want to leave within an hour."

"Oh, do you have something important to do tonight after handing me over?" Robin said bitterly. "I wish _I_ had…"

"My client seemed to consider it important… I think he cleared his whole calendar for_ days_ just for your sake," the man smirked.

"Great…" Robin rather missed the good old days at that moment.

After eating breakfast, consisting of food which appeared to be bought in a vending machine, Robin felt another call of nature. Slade had cuffed his hands in front of him for now, and they were still aching from being bent backwards for so long.

"I want to use the bathroom…" he told the man.

Slade checked the room one time extra and nodded.

"Not even a scrawny kid like you can get out that window. Fine, go in. But the door stays open." he said, removing the rope from Robin's neck and feet.

"But… I have to… you know…" the teen objected, blushing.

"Open or I'm in there with you."

"Fine!" the teen tried to at least shut the door half way, but the man wouldn't have it.

"I won't peek. Had I wanted to watch that, I would," Slade snorted.

Robin glared but as Slade started to pack the rope and his dirty clothes into his small bag, the teen lowered his jeans and sat down. He looked around, and yes, the window was tiny, he wouldn't even get his head through that, but there _was_ something else. A huge, old-fashioned air vent which looked like a rectangle with plastic shutters. Robin could see the sky between them, and quickly looked back as Slade. The man was just finishing packing and the teen would be out of time. He finished his business, but didn't flush, and then a stroke of luck; Slade picked up his cell phone. Even as the man dialed, Robin carefully stood up, partially hidden behind the door, and pulled up his jeans.

"Yes, it's me. I have him. Yes. We'll be at your place approximately at seven PM-"

Robin wasn't standing around and listening. He jumped up, grabbed the shower-rail and swung his legs up and forwards.

The old, dried out plastic gave him about as much resistance as if it had been made of crackers, and before he knew it he landed on the walkway outside. He hit the ground running and was soon around the corner.

It was tricky to run with cuffed hands, so much of his balance actually came from using his arms, but that didn't stop him. He didn't know where to go, though, and he already heard running feet catching up. Slade sounded angry. Running to the back of the motel had been a mistake, Robin discovered, because there was a tall wire fence separating the motel from what looked like a little sleepy suburban community. This early in the morning he would stick out like a sore thumb if he went through there, providing he could get over the fence. He reached the end of the line, though, where a few dumpsters and a locked gate stopped him from going all around the building, and Slade had rounded the corner. Robin would never have time to climb, he knew, but at the last moment he saw a place where someone, kids or animals, had pulled the fence up a bit at the bottom. The teen didn't hesitate but threw himself on his stomach and slid under the fence, scraping his skin against the gravel. A hand grabbed one of his feet, but Robin kicked out so violently it let go.

"You can't get away, you know. You're just annoying me." Slade said, very calmly, from the other side of the fence. Robin had already rolled over and gotten to his feet, backing away as he kept his eyes on the man.

"This is not about what I _can_ do… it's about what I _have_ to do…" he panted. "I'm running for my _life _here... you're running for _money_."

"Yes… let's see what wins, shall we?" the man smirked.

Money did. Robin gave the man a good run for them, but thirty minutes later the teen lay panting on his stomach very much in the same position like he had in the woods the day before. This time, though, it was a manicured lawn, and its owner was shrilly asking Slade what was going on. The man told the same story as before and asked to borrow a clothes-line he had spotted in the yard, to secure the dangerous druggie.

Trussed up like so much meat, Slade carried Robin back the car over his shoulder.

"I must give you credit for actually almost succeeding twice," the man told him, patting his butt encouragingly. "You've made us a bit late, however, so no more chances for you. Hope you understand."

Robin spent the next twelve hours tied so hard to the front seat that he could hardly move his head. Slade helped him pee in a jar once, not even willing to let him out of the car again. When the teen's cursing, bartering and plain out begging got too much, Slade just gagged him again.

When Robin saw the building his shoulder blades automatically tried to dig their way out of the back of the seat in an effort to get away, and he tried to shake his head as a last plea. He didn't want to go inside. He really, really didn't. The grim house only grew, though, dwarfing its surroundings and them, as the car stopped outside the doors. Slade walked unrushed to Robin's side again and used a knife to cut him loose. The teen made a last effort to bolt, but his limbs were all half asleep by then, shaky and weak. The man had no problems dragging him up the stairs and inside, the heavy doors closing with an ominous sound behind them.

"I don't think the gag is necessary…" The voice made Robin jump, whipping his head in its direction, seeing only shadows until a man emerged from them.

"Oh trust me, it was to me…" Slade chuckled, but undid the clasp.

Robin spluttered again and tried to wipe his chin ion his shoulder, where drool had leaked out.

"You can remove the cuffs too," the man drawled.

"Are you sure about that? He's crafty."

"I am."

"Before I do, I'd like to point out that with that my job is done. If he gets away now, just because you decided he doesn't need the handcuffs, he's either your problem or you can hire me again."

"I understand. The remaining five hundred thousand dollars are being wired to your account as we speak."

The teens' eyes widened a little. If the man had paid half in advance… that was a lot of money. On the other hand, there was a lot at stake.

"So Richard… let's talk…" the man said, addressing the teen directly for the first time.

"We don't have anything to talk about Bruce," Robin snarled. "I already told you, I won't do it!"

"You will. You chose to turn your back on your life's mission; fine. But if you are not Robin, you are Richard Grayson, and he has responsibilities too. To me, and to Wayne Enterprises. You are not a child anymore. It's time to grow up."

"I won't marry some stupid bimbo for business!" the teen snarled.

"That stupid bimbo is the daughter of Wayne Enterprises' biggest competitor. We're going in for a takeover, but we need a friendly façade to make sure the stocks doesn't drop. You're it."

"Forget it! I won't marry anyone for money or business, Bruce! Do it yourself!"

"She's nineteen."

"Well, I'm gay!"

"Doesn't matter."

"Excuse me, it think it does!" the teen snarled. "Or don't you care about getting 'grand children'?"

"If you really can't sleep with her, it's a simple medical procedure to get her pregnant when the time comes. It's all about the façade, Richard. Haven't I taught you anything?"

"Yeah, than money can solve anything!" the teen snorted. Then he smirked. "And actually… you might be right. Slade, you're no longer working for Bruce, are you?"

"Correct," the man agreed with a shrug.

Robin's grin grew. Maybe things were looking up after all…

"How would you like to make another million dollars?"

_The End._

* * *

A/N: as 'usual' with **Tinclay**, she just doesn't give me an idea, she practically writes the whole story, so the twist at the end, and even the last sentence, are all hers, I'll take no credit. She also wished for no sex, so go yell at her if you missed that ingredient.. .;) It was actually a nice change of pace, and since she agreed to hints I had fun with those… I threw in Robin being gay at the end (or just claiming to be out of desperation) just because I wanted to include Batman's "so what" attitude to it… ;)

Now, what exactly is Robin asking Slade to do? Weeeelll... it can range from just helping him get out of there to kill Batman... you have to ask Tinclay if she knows... ;)

Hope you enjoyed!


	13. 13 Doesn't Matter Who You Are

A/N: Merry Christmas **GraysonGirl!**

Genre: fairly canon, not very fluffy, but also rather cracky… only meant to be a bit strange and fun ;) Loved this idea even though it stumped me at first, but hey… trust me… you would have been stumped too…

* * *

**Doesn't Matter Who You Are**

"But Robin-"

"No, Speedy! I know we've done things and I really like you, but I'm not _ready_!" the leader of the original Teen Titans snapped.

"Okay, okay! I'm not trying to nag you or anything…" Speedy said, raising his hands. "But, come on… can't we at least snuggle?"

"Just get out!"

* * *

The archer muttered to himself as he jumped to the next roof. He had needed to blow off a little steam after his quarrel with Robin… getting rid of a few frustrations… and his hand hadn't helped much, so he decided a nighttime roof-top sprint and maybe some target practice could do the trick.

He didn't get Robin sometimes… the damn kid was so hot and cold. He could be all over him one moment and then go on this strange holy virgin trip the next. Hell, he had even offered to bottom, but noooo…. Okay, so he had offered to bottom on the_ second_ round, but still…

* * *

Red X was having a bit of a moral dilemma. He was standing in Slade's lab, where he was not allowed to be, but that wasn't the dilemma. No, he was looking at a plate with two cookies on it and wondered whether he should steal one… or both.

He _did_ find it a bit strange that the cookies were there at all; Slade had never offered him any when he had been over before. On the other hand, the only thing the man ever offered him was a quick fuck, and even _that_ he had to beg for. A man like that didn't deserve any cookies, now did he? Absolutely not.

* * *

Speedy almost ran straight into a shadow as it jumped out from nowhere and landed on the same ledge he was aiming for.

"Hey watch it!" the archer snarled.

"Oh, grumpy bow-boy? Wanna cookie?" the thief asked, handing the stunned hero one of the big, round, delicious looking treats.

"Stealing cookies now, Red?" Speedy snorted, but took it anyway.

"Nah, these are Slade's… he's being a bit of a jerk…" Red X shrugged and sat down on the ledge.

"Could use a cookie right about now…" Speedy muttered and sat down as well.

"What, you're not gonna try and arrest me? What will Robin say?" the thief snickered.

"Let's just say that if he doesn't wanna help me with my needs, I'm not gonna help him with his… this is his city, so you are his problem…"

"Ah, I wish… have been wanting to get close and personal with that cute ass for a _while_ now…" Red sighed longingly as he pulled up the bottom of his mask so he could nibble on his cookie.

"Pft! Yeah, good luck with _that_!" Speedy snorted.

"Tricky?"

"Like solving a puzzle with the pieces upside down…"

"Ah, so it's not _impossible_, it will just take a lot of time, huh?" X smirked.

"Something like that… good cookie anyway…" the archer mumbled.

"Yeah, not bad… I wonder if he baked them?"

"They are really Slade's?"

"Yup."

"So what did he do?"

"Nah, nothing… he just likes to do all the fucking and none of the cuddling, you know?"

"You… with _Slade_?"

"Oh, yeah… and I'm telling you; if you ever get the chance… go for it!"

"Don't think so… and I wouldn't wanna be anywhere near you when he discovers that you have been stealing from him…" Speedy smirked. "Well… see you… and good luck with Robin, I'm pretty close to giving up there…"

"I'd lend you Slade?"

"Don't think so… but steal a few more cookies if you can," Speedy chuckled.

The archer headed straight home to the Tower, just wanting to go to bed for the night. He had just entered the main living room when his whole world suddenly shifted. When he opened his eyes again, he was back on the ledge, dangling his legs over the edge. His _black clad _legs.

"What the…"

"Hello Red X… you didn't happen to steal my cookies, did you?" A voice said above him. Speedy looked up… and up… and up, until he met Slade's narrowed eye.

"Oh, fuck…" he mumbled.

* * *

Red X blinked, and then blinked again, just to be sure. Yup. This was the Titan's living room. He'd been here before once or twice. The question was; how had he gotten here this time? He looked down, seeing a slightly wider chest than he was used to, and noticed that he apparently was wearing Speedy's clothes. He put his hands on his face, and yes, he was apparently wearing Speedy's face as well. The next step was obvious; he pulled out the hem of his trousers and checked the contents.

"Not too bad…" Red X muttered and sauntered off.

* * *

Speedy had a slightly more complex brain than Red X, at least when it came to certain philosophical areas, like 'who am I?', 'where am I going?' and 'Why can't Slade let go so I can get away?'. No such luck, however, as the man dragged him all the way to what looked to be his hideout.

"I had intended to test those cookies tonight, you little ingrate…" the man growled. "Did you eat both of them? Why am I even asking, of course you did…" he snorted. "Lucky for you, if you ingest both components there will be no results."

"And… errr… if you… don't?"

"If you only eat one; no effect. Not, at least, if the other one doesn't get eaten when the substance is still active in your body. If that happens; the chemicals in combinations with the billion of nano-bots in each cookie, takes over your brain and send its primary signals regarding self and perceptive processes to the other set of nano-bots in the other host, who sends the same type of information back."

"So… what… body-switching?" Speedy asked.

Slade's eye narrowed.

"You sure caught onto that one quickly enough…" he said suspiciously.

"Err…. saw it in a move the other night" Speedy said, deciding to try and dumb down a little bit. He did not want Slade to know that he had a Titan in his secret hideout. "So, like… is it like… forever?"

"No. I am developing it for spying purposes. The dose in the cookies lasts for… about four hours."

"Oh, good…. I… I mean… in general…" Speedy said, feverishly wishing he could take off the damn mask because he desperately needed a few, deep, calming breaths. "Err… but… why cookies?"

"The bots need to be ingested and they need to be ingested with food. Something you can eat quickly and doesn't look suspicious. And cupcakes are harder to bake."

Now Speedy was grateful Red X wore a mask, or Slade would have killed him for trying not to laugh.

"So… yeah… sorry about your cookies and everything… how about I help you make some new ones tomorrow?" he suggested. He was sure Red X wouldn't mind.

"You will… but you will also make it up to me right now," the man said, his hands going to his fly.

* * *

Red X strolled down a corridor, knowing he was in the sleeping quarter's part of the tower. He had decided to check the place out now that he didn't have to hide or anything. Suddenly a door opened just as he was about to pass it.

"Oh!" the person's eyes widened and for a second Red thought he had, somehow, been recognized. "H-hi Speedy… I was just… going to go look for you…" Robin said. The teen was blushing a little, but it was the fact that he was only wearing boxers and a robe that was really interesting. "I... I thought it over and… I was just nervous and… well… I've changed my mind…"

"Wanted some fun after all?" Red chuckled.

"Yeah!" Robin said and pulled him inside.

* * *

A few hours later they both woke up at the exact same time, as their worlds shifted yet again. Speedy lifted his head, and looked down on an unruly head of black hair resting on his chest.

Red X opened his eye, lying alone on a cot in Slade's lair, his ass hurting like never before and with the cookie recipe taped to his chest.

Maybe it was because of the situation, or maybe they still shared an inkling of consciousness, because they both had the same comment.

"What the hell did I miss?"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: no smex!... because it wouldn't have been as funny with it… and I kinda think it is a bit funny… but with smex it would have been too long… so… you have to imagine it yourselves! ;)

So tell me body-switching cookies wouldn't have stumped you! ;) **Graysongirl **decided who would eat them, but after that it was mostly up to me to make sense of it. I might have failed… but I had a fun time doing it!


	14. 14 Another Time Another Place

**A/N: **Merry Christmas** KiRaToYa!**

**Genre: **AU starting as canon. This is not as dark as it could have been, it's more of a "serious topic-dark", but it's still in the dark-section… it's a bit of both, though…

* * *

**Another Time, Another Place**

Robin tensed as he was sitting in the Tower's security central. He was on watch duty, and it was serious. In the Tower, at this point, was one of the world's most dangerous things: a time machine. It was a twin of the Clock of Eternity, the one Warp had tried to steal some years before and which almost had made them lose Starfire. At that point they hadn't been sure what the item did, after all Warp already had the means of time-travel.

They had handed the clock to the Justice League who had studied it and then destroyed it. As far as Robin knew, Superman had thrown it into the sun, as it had been deemed too dangerous to even dismantle. The League's report had stated that yes, time travel with the clock was possible, but that it didn't let you set a date; it tapped into your mind and brought you to a random time and place, according to both what it found there and what it already knew of eternity… so if you were thinking of ice-cream you might be brought back to the date and place of its invention, or to the café last week where you had a really good Banana Split. There were signs that it could do more, that it actually could create matter, but not even the League could crack all its secrets. It was both random and very dangerous, and now its twin had appeared in an antique-shop.

The Titans had secured it, but it had been in the papers in one of those 'do you know what this is?' segments, where readers were supposed to help by contacting the paper with information, and so the Tower was on high alert. And there had just been a small blip. It was tiny, perhaps just a glitch, perhaps just a figment of Robin's imagination, but he couldn't risk it. Batman had promised to send Superman to them as soon as he could, to have the object destroyed in the same way as the last, but the Man of Steel would apparently not be back on Earth until tomorrow. Still, one night in the Tower… it would be safe… right?

Robin got up from the chair and ran.

* * *

"Slade!"

"Well, hello Robin. Nice of you to drop by. Want to help me figure out how this thing works?"

The man was holding the golden clock. How he had gotten it out from the triple safes Robin didn't know, nor was it important.

"Put it down! It's dangerous!"

"I know it is, I read the report about the first one," the man said calmly.

"How did you-" the teen started. The League's systems should be impossible to hack, but… he glanced at the opened door to the first safe, and did a mental shrug. "No matter. Put it down, Slade. What, you want to be a Time Lord now?"

"This is hardly a Tardis…" the man said dryly.

Robin blinked at the fact that he had understood Doctor Who reference but shrugged that off as well.

"It is dangerous, though. Trust me, you don't want to mess with time…" Robin said calmly. He didn't want to sound the alarm right now, because, as of now, Slade wasn't really doing anything but hold it. If the man felt he had to escape, though…

"Time is all I have, why _not _play with it?" the man smirked a little, but the teen could sense some amount of pain behind the joke.

"We've put many of our differences behind us lately after you helped with Trigon… and then with the Brotherhood of Evil…" Robin said slowly. "I was thinking that I was beginning to get to know you a little… understand you… but if you steal this from us, Slade, then all deals are off, and you'll be our enemy again… and the JL will be after you too. I can understand you curiosity, but please reconsider!"

"I'm not here to steal it," the man said, setting it down on a table between them.

"You're not? Then why?"

"I'm here because what you mentioned; curiosity… and I'm tired of waiting."

"Waiting? Waiting for what?"

The man chuckled.

"I can't really explain it… I don't even know if it's supposed to be _now_… but a time-travel piece in the tower… I couldn't _help_ not to come…"

"I don't understand what you are talking about? What do you mean 'now'?" Robin exclaimed.

"As I said, I can't explain… I can't even figure out how it works, not without more time, so to speak. Here. Take it. I might have been mistaken, after all…"

Robin reached out for the clock, giving Slade a suspicious look, but the man let him take the item back.

"I really wish I understood you better…" the teen muttered. Then everything around him suddenly disappeared.

* * *

Robin felt like he was moving and remaining still at the same time. He was floating… at least he thought he was… Then his clothes and even his mask just disintegrated into nothing and he was_ naked_ in a very weird 'between time and space' place. He seemed to be rushing even faster now, too, towards a pinpoint of light which grew with alarming speed. Right before he hit the light he felt fabric against his skin again, and something cold around his neck.

"Hey, were did you come from, private, I thought this truck was empty! Up and out, join the others!"

Robin was very, very confused, but one thing Batman has taught him was to think fast, and he was pretty sure that following orders in this situation was his best move.

He jumped out of a tarp-covered truck and quickly joined a couple of rows of men. The rows were still filling out, as people from other trucks joined them, and soon he felt almost lost in a sea of green. Military green.

He looked around quickly. He was pretty sure that he wasn't in the states anymore. Feeling the coldness against his neck again as he moved his head, he touched it. It was a chain. With dog-tags. Robin glanced at them. His name, his real name, Richard Grayson, was inscribed on them. Blood type too. His social security number was wrong, though, the teen noticed. Something glittered on his wrist. A watch! A gold watch… that was… weird. Then the teen recognized the design of the watch's face and hands. It was the Clock of Eternity! It had come with him! Great! The teen pressed and turned the knob on the side, but nothing happened. Well, he'd figure it out later.

Having no idea where or _when_ he was, he tried to gain some clues. This was American forces, that much was clear. The trucks and clothes didn't give a whole lot away… the trucks did look old fashioned, but on the other hand military vehicles were usually quite sturdy and lasted a long time. Unless they got blown up.

"Attention!"

Everyone snapped to attention around him and Robin tried to mimic it. He couldn't stand out, that wouldn't be good idea. The military was often worried about spies, after all.

The man standing in front of them was of the tall, strapping sort. His brown hair had grayed at the sides and his face showed that he spent more time outside than behind a desk.

"Welcome recruits! My name is Colonel Smith and I am just going to tell you one thing; Korea is _not_ your backyard. Stay close to your units, don't take strolls around the scenery unless you wish to get shot by a sniper or step on a mine. Captain Wood and Captain Johansen will appoint you to your respective units. We are proud to have you here. Don't get killed. At ease."

Robin's eyes had widened. Korea? Was this… the _Korean War_? Oh, _damn_ was he in trouble! What the hell was he doing here? He tried desperately to remember whatever he could from his history lessons, but it wasn't much. Early fifties… Oh, Truman was president as it began, because Robin remembered his statement about the war being a "police action". That was pretty much it… North versus South… China and, in extension, Russia on the north side… Robin started to feel a bit small.

Names had been called out as Robin had tried to dig through his mind for information, and now the last couple of people were called forwards. They had all been placed in small groups of about ten people in each, but not Robin.

"You're not on our list, soldier, what's your name?" one of the Captains barked.

"Grayson, Sir, Richard Grayson!" Robin answered at once, his heat beating. He could just imagine himself being shot for treason on the spot.

"Damn clerks have messed up again. Well, you're in Unit C until we get this sorted," the man said. "Over there."

"Thank you, sir," Robin said and saluted. He _did _know how to do that, and the man just nodded, so he might not have made a fool of himself.

As he joined the group a few people guys nodded to him and he nodded back. No one seemed familiar, but then again, why would they?

"Listen up, soldiers!" someone shouted, and Robin turned around to see a short, somewhat pudgy man with a crew cut. That made the teen realize something and he raked his hand through his own hair. Yeah. Defiantly shorter, and no gel. The clock would_ pay_ for messing with his hair… For now, though, he had to focus on the shouting man. "The name's Sergeant Kells. I was supposed to take you to your camp, but I've just received other orders, so here's my replacement, He's a recruit like you, but he's been here six months and hasn't been killed yet, so to you, he's a pro. Do as he says or you'll be served in the mess, clear?"

"Sir, Yes. Sir!" the group chorused, and the sergeant snorted before turning around and stalking off.

Robin turned his attention to the other recruit and felt his world swirl a little bit out of focus. Could it.. no! No, no fucking way? The guy was taller than him by at least half a head, broad shouldered, well muscled but rather lean too. His hair was cut short and almost corn blond, a color Robin would have deem fake at another time and on another person. The guy's eyes glittered as he took a step forward.

"My name is Slade Wilson. We have quite a long way to walk today, as the rains have washed away a few roads. You gear is over by the trucks. As Sergeant Kells said, I'm not your commanding officer, but if you endanger this unit by thinking that you know better, I will personally make sure you won't do it again. Now follow me."

Robin was speechless. This Slade couldn't be much older than he was, and he was in a _war_? Yes, he had seen the man's files once, he knew his military record was extensive, but reading about something and seeing it for himself was very different.

He dared a glance at the solider when he passed him. Their eyes met, and for a second Robin thought that Slade would, somehow, recognize him. The man didn't, though, but his eyes narrowed slightly, not in anger but something else. Suspicion? Curiosity? Robin ducked his head and hurried for the pile of supplies.

They all got a backpack, and it was one for him too, luckily enough. Perhaps the clock had seen to it. It was heavy and the straps was starting to chafe his shoulders while he still within hearing-distance from the original camp.

Robin was the very last of the row when they started walking, but as the miles went by some started to tire and fall behind, while Robin, although it was a tough walk, was used to worse.

"Nice going there. You're not looking half dead like some of the others," Slade's voice suddenly said.

"Thank you, Sir," Robin mumbled.

"It's not Sir, at least not yet," the other young man chuckled. "Call me Slade. What's yours?"

"Richard… Nice to meet you," Robin nodded, not sure what the protocol was for meeting people while walking across enemy territory… although, strictly speaking, this probably wasn't enemy territory.

"Likewise, Dick… I'm going down the line, getting to know people. We'll talk later. I think we have a few things in common…" Slade said and moved on to the next person.

Robin swallowed, wondering what those things might be.

"So, how old are you, really?"

They had taken a break to eat and rest before they continued, and the group was spread out in a small clearing. Robin, had been sitting by himself, but now Slade plopped down on the ground next to him.

"I…w-what?" the black-haired teen stuttered.

"It's okay. I won't say anything. How old are you?"

"S-sixteen," Robin answered.

"Like me then. I'm about to turn seventeen, though. See? I'll keep your secret if you keep mine."

"Yeah… sure," Robin blinked. Slade was _sixteen_? He looked at _least _eighteen with that height and build. _Damn his genes._

"Now, you have to stop looking around like a frightened little bird, though… So, you're underage, trust me; out here, that stuff doesn't matter. Just do your job, don't complain too much, and try not to cry for mommy at night. At least not so anyone hears you," the other teen smirked.

"I'll keep that in mind," Robin grinned, and he got a grin back.

"So… what kind of poison is the army trying to feed us today? Oh, grey mush… my favorite…" Slade said and leaned back against a rock as he started eating. "Welcome to adventure, kid… You'll learn to like it…"

Robin spent the next couple of days watching the other young man. They had ended up sharing a tent and Slade had more or less taken him under his wing, so they worked a lot together. Robin heard a few jokes about Slade and his puppy, but he just couldn't keep his eyes off him…

It was unbelievable strange to spend time with a young Slade Wilson… his language, the way he moved, his facial expressions, everything was different. The few times Robin had seen the man without his mask, his face had been hard, unreadable, but there was little of that in sixteen-year-old Slade's features. And the Slade he knew didn't throw himself down on his bed or scratch his balls… or burp… not in front of Robin, anyway.

Still there were things that were definitely Slade. He was intelligent, he worked with a focus that seemed to burn though any task, he was strong, and he could fight. Robin thought that he could actually kick Slade's ass at this age, but the Titan had, after all, had excessive training. Much older soldiers, who had gotten drunk or were just plain bullies looking for a fight, got their asses handed to them, quickly and efficiently.

Dark thoughts entered the Titan's mind as well. He could _stop _Slade. Stop everything that had happened. It was war, after all… people died. Robin had no idea how many had lost their lives to this man, or _would_, rather. Slade had told him that he had been to the front twice so far and in several smaller skirmishes as well. He admitted that he had probably killed around ten people.

"It's not fun, Dick," the young man had explained as they lay in the dark, their bunks only inches apart. "But it needs to be done. We have our orders, and… it's a job. I don't think I could ever find pleasure in it, though… some soldiers claim that they do, some break apart… I just do my job."

Robin knew he couldn't kill the man, not really. Maybe that made him just as guilty for those deaths, but he wasn't a killer. Also, how much would the future change if Slade died at sixteen? Robin knew the man had gone on several government missions, taking out dictators and actually_ preventing_ wars… maybe, even more people would actually die if he did? Robin sighed. He knew those thoughts were just an excuse to avoid even considering the murder seriously.

The thing was that he was beginning to admire Slade. Most of the recruits did, or did at least respect him, and the guy was actually rather easy to like. He wasn't a jokester, he didn't tolerate too much goofing off, but he wasn't someone who would snitch on you to the officers either… if you did something really stupid he'd make sure you'd tell them yourself…

Robin spent a lot of his free time fiddling with the watch, trying to tell it, or make it, take him back to his own time, but it did nothing, except actually keeping a good time without needing to be wound up.

The teen's days were surprisingly boring for being in a war. They weren't that close to the front, even though there were the occasional scare of snipers and bombers, and the soldiers spent most of their days on menial tasks like digging latrines, getting rid of weeds and peeling potatoes. Robin really had no idea why people bothered with weeds, but the military seemed to have a very weird neat-streak… like being close to death shouldn't worry them as much as keeping their beds in order and their boots shiny. And God help the man with an untucked shirt.

"It's best to keep busy; sitting around, just waiting, drives people crazy," Slade told him as they both were peeling a mountain of potatoes. Robin had just muttered something about the cooks just boiling them to mush anyway.

"I know," the teen said. "It's just not what I… expected…" he shrugged.

Slade gave a short laugh.

"Please don't wish for exciting things to happen… not when it comes to fighting, at least…"

"What else exciting things are there?" the hero smirked, and got a peculiar look from the blond.

"Well, maybe I'll tell you later…" Slade smirked.

"Another card game?" Robin asked.

"Something like that…"

They let the subject drop, but Robin's curiosity was peaked.

They were on guard-duty, outside the perimeter of the campsite, when it happened. As it came time to eat, Slade fished out a meal of cold cuts, cheese, fresh bread and even two candy bars. No alcohol, however, the blond was strict when it came to drinking on duty.

"Where did you get this?" Robin asked, mouth watering. Whatever it said on the menu, everything looked like mush in the canteen. Sometimes mush with peas.

"Well, you got to know the right people… do the right favors…" the other teen smirked.

"What kind of favors?" Robin blinked. "Did you polish someone's boots or what?"

"Well, I polished _something_… but not his _boots_…"

Robin blinked and then gaped.

"What… you… really?"

Slade chuckled, the sound very pleased.

"I knew it…"

"Knew what?" Robin asked, completely lost.

"You picked up on that very quickly, didn't you? A little too fast, I'd say… so… you're a homosexual, then?"

"I… I… I" the hero stuttered. The blond raised a hand.

"I'm not going to tell anyone, just as with the age, trust me… the army has a lot of poofs… they wanna do their duty too, I guess…"

"Are… are you…?" Robin asked carefully.

"Me? Nah, I don't mind it, I guess… and for a few favors…"

"You… err… what… err… what do you… umm… do?" the Titan continued.

"Oh, hand jobs, suck them off… some wants to be fucked…"

"Ever… ever… been… on the bottom?" the teen couldn't help himself, he _had_ to know.

"Once or twice."

"Really? For who? Not the Sarge, right?" Robin asked. That man had given him one or two looks…

"What? No, that ape only gets a hand job at most," Slade snorted.

"So… who?"

"Remember Colonel Smith?"

"Yeah…" Robin nodded, thinking back to the weird introduction they had gotten. "_Him_? Really?"

"Well, I got a long weekend in Tokyo with a few friends out of it…" the man shrugged. "Wouldn't do it for less, though… not my favorite thing in the world…" the blond gave him a quick glance. "Although it can be great, of course… if you're with someone who knows what he's doing…"

Robin almost burst out snickering. Slade had come a long way when it came to being subtle.

"Yeah… maybe you're right..." the Titan said carefully. He wouldn't really have checked the the 'gay' box on a sex-survey, but he was very curious, and, yes, he had a little man-crush on Slade, he admitted that. Besides, they were in the past, so who could it hurt, right? It wasn't like they could make each other pregnant and end up being their own grand parent or… well… whatever. Time travel was tricky.

"So… can I kiss you then?" Slade asked. Robin smiled and nodded, again having a feeling that the Slade in his time _wouldn't_ ask.

Their lips met somewhat awkwardly, but, as the kiss deepened, all clumsiness was forgotten.

"You're good at that…" Slade murmured as they parted.

"First time..." Robin admitted.

"Really? Then you're a natural," Slade grinned.

The rest of the day was spent being bad lookouts, mostly. Slade insisted that they surveyed their designed area, but the kissing breaks were frequent. They didn't go any further than that, however, and that actually made Robin's heart beat a little faster every time he looked a the blond. Which was a lot. The teen sighed. It probably wasn't a man-crush anymore, it was the real deal.

He was surprised that Slade hadn't just suggested that they should suck each other off… the guy had admitted to doing these kinds of things only as business deals before, and in a mostly all-male environment Robin wouldn't have thought it strange to just hooking up as some kind of mutual masturbation-partners… but Slade didn't treat him that way… he didn't look at him that way either… he was being… well… a bit of a gentleman, the teen hero guessed.

The ambush put an abrupt end to their alone-time, as three North Korean soldiers suddenly rushed out on the path in front of them, one wielding a knife and the other a gun while the third was shouting something.

"They're out of bullets, or we would have been dead already…" Slade hissed.

"We'll take 'em then," Robin nodded and, without further ado, attacked. From the corner of his eye he saw Slade blocking a rifle that was swung at his head, and the teen quickly blocked a knife-thrust and kicked out at the other opponent at the same time. Robin had taken down two as Slade had just managed to get his own on the ground.

"That was some fighting… that was karate, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Robin admitted, although the moves had actually been a mix of many styles.

"We've only had a bit of training…. looks nifty… I'll look into it," the blond said, all the while tying up the prisoners. "Might come in handy when there's no time to fire," he added, grinning as he patted the rifle on Robin's back. He was carrying one as well, but the hero was glad they hadn't been used.

Their prisoners caused quite a stir, which led to a few men, Slade and Robin among them, being ordered out to see if they could find out where the ambushers had come from. That, unfortunately, went a little better than the Titan might have hoped.

Robin saw the guy in front of him jerk before he heard the shot.

"Everyone down!" the Sergeant barked, like it wasn't the obvious thing to do. They were in the open, however, and had to crawl to the safety of a few rocks at the edge of the forest. Slade had just put his hand out to help pull Robin to safety when the teen heard machine gun fire and then his back exploded in pain.

"Dick! No!" Slade yelled and dragged him behind the rock.

Robin could see by Slade's expression that things weren't good, but, right now, it didn't hurt much. He had trouble breathing, though, and felt like he needed to cough.

"Wilson, this way!" he heard the Sergeant order.

"Grayson's hurt, Sarge, we can't just leave him!" the blond objected.

"He'll never make it and they are peppering us like crazy. Move! Now!"

"No!"

Robin looked up at Slade hovering above him and the sergeant pulling out a gun.

"I'd rather not waste a bullet on you when we need all the firepower we have. Come now! It's an order, soldier! What would you rather do; die while dragging the corpse of your friend out of the jungle or get back at these mother fuckers?"

"It's… okay… Slade…" Robin mumbled. "Go… Or you'll die too."

"I'll… I'll come back for you, just hang on, right?" Slade whispered.

"Sure… thing…" Robin mumbled with a smile.

"Grab his rifle!" the Sarge barked and turned away.

Slade, who had been bent over him, gently pulled Robin's gun off his shoulder and gave him a quick peck on the lips. The pain in the blue-grey eyes was more devastating to Robin that the knowledge that he would be dead soon.

The group left and Robin could hear gunfire and shouts, getting more distant every time. He was starting to fade away. He chuckled a little to himself. If he told the Titan's this story they would never believe him… Slade having a heart? Who knew?

The next moment the teen was floating. It wasn't much of a surprise to him, he had always pictured death like his… oh, not because some trip about the soul leaving the body, no, no… the brain shutting down though, that created the feeling of floating and… being naked? Huh… he didn't know about that one… the bright light, though, that was also a creation of the brain, which…

"Wh-what?"

Robin blinked. He was… in the Titan's vault?

"Hello, Dick," Slade, without his mask, said and kissed him.

_I was right… he DOESN'T ask…_ Robin thought randomly to himself before the kiss made all other thoughts obsolete.

"How… did you…?" the teen gasped, looking up at the man, mind reeling as he saw both Slade's young face and his mature on at once.

"I remember you."

"But… I died… how could…?"

"Yes, I thought you did. I came back for you, you know, but you were gone. Normally I would have thought the enemy got you but… your blood was gone too… I spent years thinking about that… if there had been an animal… a really localized rainshower… of if I had gone to the wrong place… if you were still there somewhere… I didn't understand the missing blood…"

"Me neither…" Robin admitted.

"The clock… it made sure every trace of your DNA was brought along, I'm sure… you're not hurt now, are you?"

Robin touched his back and sides carefully and shook his head.

"Good…"

"So… when did you… you know?_ Know_?"

"I remember opening the paper, years ago, reading about a circus boy who's parents had died… a Richard Grayson. Black hair, blue eyes… just like Dick's…" Slade started. Robin noticed that the man had pulled him close again, but didn't comment.

"I thought you had to be a relative, but I had searched high and low for your family when the war was over, finding nothing… I was sure you were using a fake name, but no one had even _seen _you since before that day, as far as I could find out… and here someone looking like you and with your name popped out of thin air. Well, I still thought you were a relative, of course, so I researched your parent's past without finding anything, but I couldn't really let you go… though I should try to look out for you as I failed with Dick…"

"You didn't fail anything, Slade, don't be silly!" Robin snorted.

"Felt like it…" the man smiled sadly. "Well, anyway, I traveled, so I lost sight of you for long periods of time, but I knew you were under Batman's wing… it wasn't until I met you here, in Jump, that memories started to surface… Remember, I met Dick about sixty years ago… but seeing you fighting like him… looking so much like him… it had me wondering. When the thing with the Clock of Eternity happened I… I still was sure I was crazy, but…"

"Well, I'm glad you didn't say anything before this, or I would have thought that too…" Robin grinned.

Slade kissed him again, still without asking.

"What would you say if I told you that I paid a little visit to the future and I saw us in your room… in bed together…?" the man smirked.

Robin laughed.

"I'd say you still haven't learned how to be subtle…"

_The End._

* * *

A/N: Woot! Never written a time-travel thing before… I know I could have made it darker, with Robin maybe having some more reasons to consider killing Slade and stuff, but… ah… the damn man charmed me even at sixteen!

I did minimal research on it though, or it would have taken ages… I mostly tried to remember M*A*S*H episodes… -lol- nah, I did a FEW more things… like checking if the word "gay" was used in the fifties, but, although it was known of (to describe homosexuals), it wasn't widely spread until the sixties, so I avoided that word when Slade was speaking… Other than that I didn't do any language-checks and I have no effing idea how the military people talk or how that works/worked… I just hope it sounded somewhat plausible…


	15. 15 Demon Bride

A/N: Merry Christmas** me**! (no, not ME-me… me, the anonymous reviewer… ;)

Genre: This is so AU it makes Bunny-Slade seem canon, okay? So… yeah… It's written because I fell for the pure craziness of the idea… I considered writing a serious story, but the plot-bunnies wouldn't let me. So this is going on the L-section. No, it's not a Deathnote crossover, you should know about the L/D-thing by now, pay attention!

* * *

**Demon Bride**

Slade, demon lord of the underworld, was bored. And rather horny. Mostly bored, though. Maybe slightly hungry as well. He reached for the leg of lamb a servant was holding on a plate for him and nibbled on it. The lamb not the servant. The servant was a good one, and you shouldn't eat those, he had learned.

"Bring me the soul-thief," he ordered a runner who kneeled on the floor by his raised throne.

"Are- are you sure, my Lord? You know how he irritates you?"

"I am. I have a job for him. Go," the demon ordered and waved the creature off.

Just long enough later to cause irritation and not execution, the thief sauntered in.

"Red," the Lord growled. "You kept me waiting."

"It's Red X now," the smaller demon smirked as he bowed the appropriate amount.

"Is it now?"

"Yes, something I picked up from the human realm… It's supposed to be…cool."

"You're an idiot. Well, idiot, I have a mission for you. I want a queen."

"A what?"

"A queen. Someone who can share my responsibilities as well as my bed."

"Err… okay… any preferences? Demon? Angel? Human?" Red's eyes flickered down to his Lord's bulging loincloth. "Centaur?"

"Human, I think. Someone strong with leader-abilities… maybe you should visit the royal houses first?"

"My Lord, I know you have not visited the Earth in several hundred years, so you have to trust me on this: you don't want any royalty."

"Inbred, are they? Well… I am sure you will find a queen for me… because if you do not…"

"I think I get your point…" the thief said, backing away. "I'll go… right away."

"Good. Send in Wintergreen, we will need to construct a new throne and see to my queen's other needs."

"At once, my Lord," Red X promised and fled.

* * *

The thief did not return for a month, and when he did, he was carrying a sack which was moving violently, muffled shouts coming from it.

"I was beginning to ponder where to mount your head," the demon lord growled and the sack stilled momentarily from the deep sound.

"No need, no need! The human population has just grown quite a lot. Took me a while to find your beloved queen," Red hurriedly explained, and the sack started kicking again.

"You bring your future queen to me in a sack?" Slade roared.

"I… yeah… it was... easier…" the thief stammered.

"Seems to be a very small sack as well, you did not bring me a babe, did you?"

"Well, sure, the queen's a babe! And adult one, though, I swear! I've checked with the rules of that region."

"Human slang, I presume?" the demon muttered. "Very well, as I picked a human I shall probably have to suffer that kind of speech for a while. Show me my queen!"

The thief opened the sack and ruffled looking, half naked black-haired beauty quickly stood up. The captive's hands were bound and any sounds muffled by a gag.

"Release my queen," the demon lord ordered and the lesser demon did so with a wave of his hand.

"I'm not a queen, I'm a guy!" the human yelled. "Take me back this instant!"

"It is a male?" Slade asked, glaring at the thief.

"Weeeeeelll…. I checked out a_ lot_ of queens and you'd be surprised…" Red answered. "And really, you wanted someone strong who was a leader… this one is! He's the leader of the Teen Titans… you've heard about them, have you not?"

"Yeeeesss…" the demon lord said slowly, his single eye landing on the human standing below his throne. "You defeated Trigon the Usurper… very good work there... I thank you."

"Yeah, sure, you're welcome. Now take me back!"

"What is your name?"

"Robin."

"Mine is Lord Slade. Slade to you, of course."

"Very nice to meet you," the black haired human muttered. "Again; take me back."

He looked for a way out, but apart from a set of doors which looked large enough for a couple of giraffes to walk through, the vast hall didn't offer any obvious escape routes. The Slade-creature was seated on one of two thrones on a raised dais. The walls seemed to be natural stone with pillars carved out of them. No windows, and all the light was coming from bowls of fire set into the walls.

"Red, I might be wrong, but where there not women among the Titans? Why did you not bring me one of those?"

"Not human my Lord. One was an alien and the other one actually a half-breed; Trigon's daughter."

"Ah… That would be bad politics, of course…." Slade mused.

"Besides, Robin here is the leader, you wanted a leader! And he's cute, right?"

"He is," Slade agreed. "He's very beautiful."

Robin was beyond angry. He had just come out from the shower, wearing only a pair of pajama-pants, when this big, black shadow had jumped him. The creature, as he now saw it clearly, was tall and thin, with pitch black skin and long blood-red hair which was gathered in a messy, thick braid running down his whole back. His face was strange as well; black like the rest of him, but with what Robin first thought was a tattoo or painting of a white skull covering half his face. A closer look told him that it was probably a natural mark, however. He, because he was a male, the black leather breaches couldn't hide that fact, had piercing, slitted green eyes and a amused smirk on his face. When he moved, something which Robin had thought to be a tattered cape moved as well, and the teen discovered that it was in fact wings of some kind.

Robin turned to look at the so called 'lord' instead. He looked a good deal more human than Trigon had, no extra eyes or anything. He had long white hair like Raven's father, however, and he was big. Not as big as a building, but easily three or four heads taller than Robin. His skin was a blue-ish grey, not red, like Trigon's. A scar like from a claw ran down the left side of his face from his forehead to his cheek, the eye itself covered by a strip of leather. The injury seemed old, though, so Robin didn't think the leather was a bandage of some kind. The other eye looked like molten silver. The pupil wasn't slitted but didn't appear really human either; more like a burst of black than a round shape. The teen couldn't see any other additions; no hoofs, no horns, no wings… the lord wore some sort of fur cape, though, probably to isolate his skin from the rock throne, but other than that and a loin-cloth, he was naked. Which should make him less intimidating. But didn't.

"Listen, there has clearly been some kind of mistake here. I'm male, so I'm not this _queen_ you've been looking for," Robin said, trying to stay away from open hostility for now. "Sorry, just take me back and… and don't know… log onto a dating-site or something…"

"Ah, but my thief found you, and I approve. You might not be female, but that does not mean you can't be my queen and secure my line."

"That's _exactly_ what it means! And secure you line! That means kids! I can't have kids, I'm a guy!"

"Forgive me, I'm not very familiar with the human anatomy. Is this true, Red. Did you bring me a barren queen?"

"Hey, firstly you didn't say anything about heirs!" the thief defended himself, "And besides, he's lying! When I've visited earth in the later years I've seen several all male parents. The human worked it out somehow."

"No, they_ adopted_!" Robin growled. "I_ can't _get pregnant!"

"Well, have you tried to with a _demon_?" the black one leered.

"No, of course not, but-"

"See! I'm sure if anyone could breed with a human male it would be you, my Lord," the demon bowed.

"Fucking brown nose…" Robin muttered.

"No, Red X," the thief grinned. "At your service, my Queen."

"Screw you!"

"No, I think my Lord wishes for that kind of attention from you, my Queen."

"Stop calling me that!" Robin growled and shivered. It was surprisingly chilly in hell, especially when you were only wearing thread-bare pajama, bottoms. Although, to be fair, this wasn't really hell. Yet.

"My dear, you are cold. Come, take your place on your throne and the furs will warm you," the Lord said.

"Listen up you creeps! No blue, one-eyed monster in a homemade banana hammock is going to tell me what to do, alright? I just want to go hooooo-umpff!" Robin suddenly found himself on the second throne with no idea how he got there. "What… how?"

"Yes dear?" the Demon now sitting to his right asked amiably.

"I believe the humans are not very accustomed to magic," Red X informed his lord.

"I am sorry if I frightened you… I will aim to use my hands until you are more comfortable around me," the demon said and rose from his seat. Robin pressed himself deeper back in his, but the demon merely kneeled in front of his throne and tugged furs around his shoulders and legs, taking extra care to cover the teen's frozen feet, massaging them a little.

Robin gaped as he stared into the demon's eye. It all felt very overwhelming. Like a shark swimming up to you, butting you with its nose, holding a Frisbee in its mouth wanting you to throw it. And then retrieves it. It was surreal to say the least.

"Um… thanks?"

"You are very welcome, my Queen," the demon rumbled as he resumed his seat.

"Could you please stop calling me that? I'm not a queen, I'm a guy… guys can't be queens! Well… not _this _kind…"

"The title is set in my mind, but you are right. You are male… and you are my spouse now. I shall call you 'love'."

"Ah, noooo… no-no-no, that's not… I mean… I…" Robin fumbled for words.

"This calls for a celebration! Wintergreen!"

A thin, dark green demon suddenly materialized out of thin air in front of the throne.

"My Lord, you have found your queen!" the creature exclaimed. He had gray hair and a long beak-like nose. His dull pale eyes told Robin that he was probably very old. He didn't seem threatening, and actually smiled at him in what seemed to be out of happiness.

Robin smiled weakly back.

"I have. Although he is a male and do not like the title…" the Demon Lord almost seemed to be pouting.

"May I then recommend the title of Consort?" the green demon said humbly.

"Of course! Would you prefer to be known as my consort, my lovely Robin?"

"I… well, yes, it's better than queen, but as I keep telling you-"

"It is settled then. A feast, my old friend, for the whole court."

"We have been preparing. Withdraw to your chambers and dinner will be served in one hour in celebration of your happiness," the one called Wintergreen bowed.

The demon lord nodded and rose to his feet again, and held a large hand out to Robin. "Love?"

"I'm not-"

"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING!"

The roar made Robin cry out in fright and almost clamp his hands over his ears, but it was not aimed at him, but at the black demon.

"I… figured I'd done my duty, my Lord?" the thief stammered.

"No, you have not! You are the one who knows most of the human realm. You will remain here for now, attending my consort. You are now his servant."

"Yeah, how d'ya like _that _one…?" Robin smirked, but yelped as his hand was grabbed, although gently, and he was pulled to his feet.

"Let us retire, love," Slade said in a much softer voice, making Robin realize that if he ever used the scary voice on him, he'd be as good as dead. He therefore nodded and followed the creature, with Red X trailing behind.

The corridor they entered was well lit and the walls and ceiling were all beautifully carved. Robin looked around wondering if magic or artist had done this. Most of the carvings were patterns or vines, but there and there very lifelike human, demon and what looked like angel forms were up to all kinds of things like signing scrolls or pointing to carved stars. The teen wanted to ask what it all symbolized, but at the same time he didn't want to be further dragged into this than he already was.

They came to a new set of double doors, which two servants pulled open, revealing a large lounge-like room, with French doors opening up to-

"A garden?" Robin gaped, stunned at the soft evening light pouring through the windows.

"One of the biggest in the realm, and it's just for us," the demon lord said proudly, leading Robin up to the windows.

The teen looked out, expecting to see a normal view, but even though there was light, trees and flowers, there wasn't any sky.

"It's… inside a cave?" he asked.

"Oh, we don't have any suns here," Slade said, "but we do have magic."

"I'm sure you can go out there later and… frolic or what the hell humans do in gardens," Red X drawled behind them. "But there is that dinner-thing, remember?"

"Of course."

Robin bit back a yelp when the demon brought his hand to his mouth, but he didn't bite. His hand getting kissed by the large creature was a bit daunting, too, though. Robin was sure he had glimpsed a pair of sharp-looking fangs when the demon had smiled widely at him. Like now. Yes. Definitely fangs. Great.

"I will leave you in the, for his sake, capable hands of Red X. Your private dressing room is through that door, my love. Take your time. The feast will wait for you."

Robin only nodded and walked into 'his' dressing room, which was almost as big as the sitting-room. One was lined with wardrobes and shelves. The mirror on another wall could reflect an elephant easily.

"Would you like a bath before dressing, your highness?" the thief asked and opened a door leading to something Robin could actually recognize as a bathroom.

"No," he said firmly. He had just had a shower, after all. "Wait… you have plumbing?"

"This was all made to suit a human," Red explained.

"And the fact that you're talking English?" the teen hero asked.

"We demons are very closely tied to humanity, and we happen to be Anglo-Saxon demons, so to speak. You'll hear other languages at the feast. Besides, we pick up languages like humans pick up the plague… oh, sorry, that was just an expression… are you guys still sensitive about the black death-thing?"

"Err… no… been a few hundred years…" Robin shrugged.

"Good… didn't want to offend you, you know…"

"Yeah, about that one… how about you just take me home?"

"Don't wanna die, sorry," the red-haired demon shrugged. "Lord Slade would not be happy if his loved one would go missing."

"But I'm _not_ his loved one!" Robin yelled. "He doesn't even_ know_ me! He can't possibly _love_ me!"

"Ffftt… humans…" the demon snorted and rolled his slitted eyes. "It's all about flowers and poems with you, isn't it? Well, Lord Slade wanted a quee- sorry, _consort_, I brought him one, he accepted you, so of course he loves you! If he hadn't you would be back with your friends by now."

"Oh, lucky me… how do I make him _UN_-love me?"

"Probably can't be done, he's one stubborn son of a bitch… and that's not a put-down, his mother was some kind of hell-hound descendant…"

Robin closed his mouth with a click. His jaw had been hanging down by his knees for much too long.

They stared at each other awkwardly for a bit and then Red X turned to the wardrobes.

"I'm supposed to get you dressed, I think… let's see… ahhh…" he said quietly.

"What?"

"Seems he really expected a queen…" the demon said and pulled out the frilliest dress Robin had ever seen.

"I'm not wearing that!"

Of course not. Come, put your hand here," the demon said and pointed on a panel of the now closed wardrobe.

"Why?"

"Because if you don't you will be wearing the dress or go naked," the redhead smirked.

"Fine! What does it do?" Robin growled and pressed his palm against the wooden square. His hand tingled a little and there was some kind of whooshing noise coming from inside the closed wardrobes. "If there's a witch and a lion in there now…" the teen muttered.

"Huh? No, why would there be?" Red X asked, looking worried. "It's just a measurement spell. It checks your gender and your sizes and adapts… see?" the demon opened one of the doors and the contents now looked more male. "Now, let's see what we can get you to wear… Slade hasn't visited the humans since before the New World, but we can ignore those clothes and go with something… more me."

"You?" Robin snorted and looked down at the leather pants. "I'm not dressing like a male hooker, thank you very much…"

"Fine. You pick. You can probably do no wrong in Slade's eyes anyway…" the redhead huffed.

Unfortunately the wardrobe had not heard about jeans and t-shirts and the only fabric pants were knee-length breeches.

"I can't wear this!" the teen wailed.

"Oh, so naked then? A bit unconventional but not unheard of. You've seen what Slade wears in private…"

"I'm not going there naked…" Robin growled. "Ah! Underwear!" he said as he opened a drawer. "We're getting somewhere now…"

The underwear was a bit on the silky and flimsy side, but they still resembled boxer-briefs enough to be comforting to Robin. He then sighed and picked among the vast amounts of clothes. "I guess I just have to pretend I'm going to a masquerade ball…" he mumbled and started pulling things on behind a screen. When he emerged the black-skinned demon whistled.

"Not bad… going for the… about seventeen-eighties, right?"

"I have no fucking idea," Robin muttered. He was dressed in thick, white knee-high socks which reached up to where grey breaches took over. He had then put on a white shirt and found a dark red waistcoat which reminded him of his red tunic.

"It's not completely traditional, but it's pleasing…" the demon told him and helped him find a pair of low, black leather shoes. "You ass looks amazing in those pants."

"Yeah, thank you, exactly what I was going for…" Robin snorted.

"Well, if you want to wind Slade around your little finger, it is…" the thief winked.

"You think I can? Maybe he'll let me go back?" Robin said hopefully.

"Don't get your hopes up you're still his consort," Red X reminded him.

"Yeah, well… I'm going to try… or escape by myself," the teen muttered.

"You can't leave without magic, I'm afraid… you can hide somewhere, sure, but unless a demon escorts you from this realm you can't leave… and running away will make Slade feel… hurt. Trust me, you don't want that."

"I hear you," the teen sighed. He did trust that the demon spoke the truth… he could sense it, in a way. He had to take his chances with Slade. He was sure he could get through that thick non-human skull somehow.

* * *

The feast was really… colorful. Robin spent most of it staying very close to Slade because he felt it was the safest option. His newly appointed 'chamber-maid' had been dismissed for the night, something that seemed to please him a whole lot.

The celebrations had begun with Slade introducing him as his consort, making the whole hall cheer until Robin thought his eardrums would pop. Demons were not a quiet bunch.

The demon lord had surprised him by being dressed, although leather pants seemed to be the norm around here, so he wore a black pair of those and something that looked like a mix between a leather coat and a vest. It had laces running up the demon's muscled chest and Robin had to admit that, yes, it looked hot as hell, although he tried not to gawk.

His new husband kept pushing bits of food and drink into his hands and the teen was peckish so he tried a bit of everything. Most of it was even delicious, which seemed to make the demon very proud.

"Oh, look here…" the lord suddenly rumbled and Robin found himself in front of a female demon holding a baby in her arms. "This is my cousin and her latest brood," Slade said as he introduced them. "May I?" he asked his cousin and the woman smiled and nodded. She was taller than Robin by a head and the teen just understood that yes, Slade really must find him attractive, because if he had expected his queen to look anything like this lady, the Titan would have been out on his ass in seconds. Let's just say the word 'voluptuous' was probably invented with her in mind.

Robin blinked as the demon lord cooed at the baby and then yelped as he found it thrust into his arms.

"Look at him… isn't he adorable?" Slade asked.

"Ummm… yeah… yeah, he is…" Robin mumbled, looking down at the little sky blue body with its copper hair and pitch black eyes, gurgling up at him, waving four-fingered hands around, trying to catch the teen's hair. "Yes you are… you're very cute…" he started to smile for real, which made the baby give a louder, happy noise and smile toothlessly at him. "Oh, look, he has a forked tongue!" Robin exclaimed.

"Yes, who hasn't?" Slade chuckled and gave him a quick peek of his own.

Robin's mind decided to play a game called 'naughty associations' and quite enjoyed itself.

"We're hoping for one of our own soon," Robin heard Slade tell his cousin, and decided to have a serious talk with the guy later.

After handing the child back to its mother, they continued around the vast hall. Robin had more glasses pressed into his hands and after a while he started to feel a bit tipsy.

"Those… those drinks didn't have… have… alc…alcohol in them…. did they?" he asked his husband.

"Some… are you allergic?" the demon asked.

"Lit… little bit…?" Robin mumbled.

"Well, let's withdraw, then," the lord said and escorted him away from the feast.

Robin was supporting himself on the blue-skinned demon's arm, feeling the muscles in it, and leering a bit.

"You know… if… if you were human… I… I'd so… I'd so have a pic of you on the inside of my locker… if I had one…" he let Slade know.

"That's very sweet of you my love," the demon said in a somewhat uncertain way.

"Love…" Robin snickered.

"Yes?"

"No, I mean… ah, don't remember…" Robin said, waving it off as they got to the large double doors. The teen made for the right, but was guided to the left instead.

"But… my rooms?" he mumbled.

"Your dressing room is in there, yes. Our _bedroom _is this way."

"Bedroom?" the teen pictured a bed… and then sleeping on it… and it seemed all fine to him. "Yeah! Let's go to the bedroom!" he said, pulling the demon along now.

Robin was not surprised to see another enormous room and a bed to match. Fingers that were not his own were playing with the buttons on his vest, popping them open.

"Yeah… silly clothes…." Robin approved, leaning back against the chest belonging to the arms that were encircling him.

"You would rather have a different wardrobe?" Slade asked.

"Hell, yeah… decent pair of jeans…" Robin muttered.

"I'll look into it… let's get this shirt off…" his husband suggested, and Robin still felt that this was a good idea as well. He kicked his shoes off too. Then he saw the knee-socks and started giggling. "Stupid things… although I wear tights and a cape to work, you know…" he let Slade know with a bit of a slur.

"I'll get you anything you are comfortable with," the demon let him know and gently hoisted him up on the bed. Robin needed it too, because the mattress reached his hips and he wasn't really in shape at the moment. "Let's get them off, then?" Slade suggested and started to unroll his socks.

"I… I… I'm starting to think…. to think that you are undressing me…" Robin said suspiciously.

"Then perhaps I should undress myself?" Slade suggested with a leer, showing off his fangs a bit.

"Yeah! That's what you… you should!" Robin nodded vigorously. "Not me… _you_."

"Very well…"

The laces to the vest-coat thing slid apart further, exposing the whole of the demon-lord's chest before it was pulled off.

"Heh-heh…." Robin snickered and reached out. "Demons has nipples… didn't notice that before…" he slid his fingers over the blue-gray chest, teasing one darker nipple until it was hard and, apparently, sensitive.

"Is there something else you wanted to know about demons…?" Slade breathed.

"Yeah… do you guys have pubes? I have pubes…" Robin said and reached for his husband's leather pants. "Are these buttons? How do these _work_?" he asked a moment later, feeling frustrated.

"Let me help you…" Slade purred, and started to untie the trousers.

"You're barefoot…" Robin hiccupped.

"Does that disturb you? Is that unheard of among humans?" the demon-man wanted to know.

"Nah… only just noticed… Oh… you don't have pubes!"

"I am not sure I know what pubes are… could you show me?"

"Sure! Sure, it's like hair, like… here!" Robin said, crawled back a bit on the bed, laid down and lifted his hips up so he could pull the breeches off enough. "See?"

"Let me get a closer look…" Slade said and pulled Robin's breeches and underwear off completely. "Ah, yes… beautiful…"

"My pubes are beautiful?" Robin snickered, lifting his head a little.

"The whole of you are…" the demon said.

"Yeah, yeah…" Robin fought to get back to a sitting position, and won, after a few tries. "Listen,_ love_, we kinda need to talk…"

"About?" the demon seemed mesmerized, and had Robin not been somewhat tipsy, he would have loved the upper hand. Although if he had not been slightly tipsy he would not have been naked by now. Or been panicked about it.

"Well… you see… I'm a guy, right, so the baby thing… I'm sorry, but it ain't gonna work, and… stop pointing that thing at me…" Robin muttered, slapping at the demon's erection.

"You don't like it?"

"Yeah, it's gorgeous, but I'm not a porn actor doing my ninety-sixth flick if ya know what I mean…. like, it's _huge_!"

"Too big?"

"Waaaay too big! Anyway… so, there's not gonna be any babies, and …. aw, that baby was so cute! Human babies are all just pink and wrinkly and stuff… well… _white_ human babies… sorry bout that… we come in different colors too you know… did you know that? Never seen purple, though… not being alive, anyway… saw purple demons today, did you…? Yeah, you did, you spoke to them…. this is really weird, you know…But I can't have babies… it's sad…" Robin suddenly felt that it was really sad, and his lower lip started to wobble.

"Let's not think about children for now," the demon said. "It's our wedding-night, after all…"

"We... we didn't have a wedding?" Robin said, a bit unsurely in case he had missed it.

"Demon lords do not wed like humans. I pronounced you as my consort and that was all it took," Slade explained.

"Oh… human weddings have more stuff… like dresses… oh… I could have worn a dress, but… nah, it was silly… OH, but we didn't have a cake… wah… what are you doing?"

"I'm just getting into the bed, getting comfortable... so we can _talk_…" the demon explained as he pulled the covers back and slipped under a sheet, pulling Robin along with him.

"Ah… okay… good…" the teen nodded. "To talk. Where was I? Yeah, well, human weddings have cake and… aisles… and… and kisses."

"I'm sorry about the cake… you can have a kiss, though?" the demon offered, leaning over Robin's much smaller form.

"You have a weird tongue," Robin stated.

"I do?" the demon pulled back a little and looked almost hurt, so Robin threw his hands around his neck.

"no-no-no, not… not a _bad_ one! I… I thought about it… I thought very _veeeeeery_ bad things about it before…" he leered. "I'm… curious…"

"Well… let's see what it's like then…?" the demon suggested and bent his head down.

"Mm…" Robin agreed and then received the longest, strangest kissed ever. He giggled as the forked tongue tickled his bottom lip and then started to play with his own, much shorter one. It wasn't like kissing a snake or anything, he decided. It was like kissing a human who just happened to have… a damn skilled agile tongue… And skilled hands too…

"You're… you're touching me…" Robin pointed out as a hand caressed his hip and then ran up to his chest to play with his nipples.

"I am. I am curious as well, you see. It's been hundreds of years since I was on Earth last… I rarely see humans and not as close as this. Are you all this extraordinarily beautiful?"

"Umm… I'm…. I'm not… really…" Robin mumbled blushing deep red. "But… yeah… you're curious… it's okay…" he couldn't really _deny_ the creature a bit of touching, he thought. That would be rude. Kind of.

"I have to admit, I want to be inside you…" the demon growled and shifted his hips a little, so Robin could feel just exactly as much.

"And… you know… I'll let you!" Robin claimed. "If it weren't for you being so big and all… sorry…"

"Then I'll get smaller…"

Robin stared at the demon and then burst out laughing.

"You… you can _shrink _your… your… thingy?"

"I can shrink my whole _body_…" Slade leered. "This is my natural size but I can grow bigger, or smaller… all it takes is magic… and focus…" he said, and then, right in front of Robin's eyes, he began to get smaller, the demon's brow furrowed in concentration. When he stopped he was still a head taller than the teen, and he wasn't exactly tiny down there either, but Robin thought, no, he _knew,_ that he could handle that size. He had bigger toys.

"I shouldn't let you do this, we've just met…" he mumbled, however, when Slade started kissing his chest. The feeling of the forks of the tongue wrapping _around_ a nipple was breathtaking.

"We are married," the demon pointed out, using the term as he knew it.

"Yeah… there' is that…" Robin admitted, because that tongue had moved lower and there was no way in hell the teen would say anything now that could make it stop.

"Does humans like to have their sexual organs licked?" Slade asked.

"Oh, yeah… we really, _REALLY_ like that!" the hero nodded.

"Then you won't mind?"

"No… please?...OH! Yes… yes… mmm… that… oh, _hell_… sorry… I… oh, fuck…" It got even more amazing when the demon lifted Robin's hips up and started flick at his balls and then, his hole.

"I see you were not lying… taking you in my original size the first time, would have been… difficult…" the demon admitted before he let his tongue slip deep inside Robin.

"Yeah… wait..._ first_ time?" Robin blinked.

"Shh… don't mind me… I'll just make you feel good, yes?"

"Yes… yes, you do that…" the teen agreed as he stretched his arms over his head languidly.

There was a finger prodding him now, alongside the tongue and then Robin felt another strange thing to add to his collection of strangeness for the day; as the finger pushed into him, he started feeling small bursts of wetness inside.

"What… what is that?"

"Only an oil to help with the mating," the demon answered.

"What? You… you have like… lube dispensers in your fingertips?" the Titan gaped, not knowing whether to laugh or write a very strange Penthouse letter.

"Magic, Robin…" the demon purred. The teen rather liked how he said his name.

"Yeah… magic's really great…" Robin moaned and spread his legs a little wider. "Magic… is… wooow…"

"Ready for me?"

"Yeah… I… I've never… with someone real…"

"I'll be gentle…"

Robin giggled a little at the corny line, but was glad for it none the less.

"I feel like I somehow forgot about something… oooh…. oh… yeeeees!" His musings were interrupted by Slade getting into position and slowly pushing into him. It didn't hurt and went fairly easily, but Robin still felt full.

"Are you all right?" the demon asked, his voice a bit clipped as he apparently tried to focus on something. Like remaining still.

"Yeah… yeah… oh… now I remember! We shouldn't be doing this… we… Oh! Oh okay… you-can-move-yeah… yeah- mmm… but-I –should-not- YES! Oh, fuck it, we'll talk later," Robin muttered more or less to himself and clutched the man's back.

The demon might have been gentle, but the more Robin urged him on, the harder and faster he fucked the teen. The hero enjoyed it all immensely, especially the feeling of being stretched more and more, like the cock inside him kept growing. It was absolutely fantastic! Then he had to change his grip around the man a little, as the man's chest seemed to be edging upwards. And only then it hit him.

"You're growing! You're growing again!"

"I'm… sorry… can't… focus…" the demon panted as he continued to thrust into Robin as hard as he could.

"God… so …. _big_!" Robin moaned, but, although he felt like he should be able to taste the beast's cock by now, the magic lubricant and/or the slow stretching somehow still made it feel fantastic even though he was sure he had the equivalent of an _arm_ up there now. Which probably wasn't true, but it felt like it. But in an amazing way… if that was possible. Still, he had his limits, as a twinge of pain then reminded him.

"I... no… no more… big… big enough…" he groaned.

"It's alright… I'm… at normal… size…" the demon said.

"That's… funny…. normal…" Robin half gasped, half laughed.

"I want you from behind…" Slade growled huskily, and the teen's cock twitched eagerly in agreement, making the rest of his body, including his mouth, obey.

"Yeah…"

The creature above him pulled out, carefully dislodging his huge, flared head, and then helped Robin turn over on his hands and knees.

"Ready?"

"Yes, fuck me!" Robin groaned, and then the whole, huge cock pushed into him again, without stopping this time. The teen gasped but pushed back. Demon cock beat rubber every time. Who knew?

The demon had lied about the size, though, because his shaft swelled a little more as he pushed in one last time, and stayed there as the whole thing was pulsing and twisting inside the teen. Robin didn't have a choice as he was pulled along, coming himself, so much that he was feeling like he was wetting himself… although no one could really blame him if he had.

There were minutes, maybe as many as ten of them, before Robin opened his eyes again.

"That was…. wow... " he mumbled.

"Yes… you are amazing…" the demon lord purred and nuzzled his neck, although Robin didn't think he'd done anything much to deserve that.

"I… we should… talk… but… tired…" he mumbled.

"Yes. Sleep. We'll talk at breakfast," the demon promised.

* * *

"But _I _didn't get to choose, did I?" Robin said. His voice wasn't irritated, just the same tone as one might use when trying to win an argument with a child using logic.

He was lying on the demon's arm, using the large male's chest as an impromptu breakfast table.

"I was not aware that any human would not be anything but grateful to be my spouse," the demon lord rumbled. "And your point is moot, as you are already mine. And who knows? My seed might be growing in your belly as we speak," Slade added and patted the teen's stomach fondly.

"I need to get you a biology book…"Robin sighed. "Well, okay, we're… _married_, or whatever. I still have a_ job_, you know! And friends. You wanted a leader as a mate, right?"

"Yes, of course. Only a leader could share my position and understand what I do," the demon nodded.

"Well, you got one. I _am_ a leader, of the _Titans_. You already know how we took down Trigon? Well, that was a major deal, sure, but we protect our city every day of the week. They need me… and I need them. They are my friends…"

"And what about me?" the demon lord asked, sounding hurt again.

Robin sighed and threw an arm around the huge neck as he placed his cheek against the demon's blue, warm shoulder.

"I don't know… ever heard about something called commuting?"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: See? I know I have warned against alcohol before but this time it's even more serious: don't get drunk you you'll get fucked by a demon. A really lovable one, sure, even if he happens to think he's above biology… yeah well… I think the normal Slade, deep down, also believes he can get Robin pregnant if he just put his mind to it…


	16. 16 It's Not You

A/N: Merry Christmas **The Darkest Half!**

The idea from D/2 is not completely new, but I don't think I have ever really tackled it before myself, so I decided to…and I'm not sorry… ;)

Genre: A 'what if' kinda fic, based in the canon past… I had planned for this to be really, really dark, but it didn't work out that way. For once it wasn't Slade's or Robin's fault either. It was Raven's.

* * *

**It's Not You **

"He's _dead_, Slade!"

"It was him or you, you know that," the man said darkly.

"I know, but call the police," Robin insisted and stood up from the where he had been kneeling to check the stranger's pulse. The man in his early thirties had been high out of his mind and been wielding a gun.

"I say we get rid of the body," Slade advised and leaned against a wall, crossing his arms.

"Are you insane? Call the cops! It was self defense!"

"Even so, with my record…"

"Look, I'll speak up for you; it was _my_ life you saved."

"We are also a couple. I'm not saying a jury wouldn't believe you, but the attorneys would make a feast out of this, I guarantee it… and they might revoke my bounty-hunter license."

"Then you'll do something else! We're going to do the right thing, Slade!"

"How about you go on up to the apartment, and I'll take care of it?" Slade suggested. "Hell, we'll both go… let him be found, there were no witnesses…"

Robin glared at his lover and picked up his phone.

* * *

"I told you it was going to be fine!" Robin said one month later. They had just gotten word that the city wasn't even making a case out of it, as they were swamped with other crimes where the city hero _wasn't _on the offenders' side.

"That you did… are you going to stop moping around now?" Slade smirked and pulled him closer.

"I guess… I've just been worried…" Robin mumbled and kissed the man.

"Well, let me make you feel better, then…" Slade purred and led his younger lover to bed.

* * *

Robin woke up the next morning in Slade's arms. He closed his eyes, snuggled closer and tried to go back to sleep. He wasn't expected to report to the Tower until ten, unless there was an emergency.

The Titan's former home and headquarters had become more of just headquarters over the years. They still had rooms there and other heroes stayed over whenever they were in the area, but the Teen Titans weren't teens anymore, at least not all of them. Robin was, though, at nineteen, and Beast Boy was seventeen, but the rest was older, even Starfire, although her age was not really comparable with earth years. They were growing up. They dated. They had all been in serious relationships, and living in the Tower just didn't work in most of those, so instead they had deiced on a schedule where they had time off unless they were needed, and that worked out very well.

Robin sighed and rolled over on his back. He couldn't sleep. He sat up and let his legs fall over the edge of the bed while he yawned and rubbed his eyes. He was still tired but… it had been like this for weeks… being unable to sleep properly and that gnawing sensation in his stomach…

"Up for some fun before work?" he heard Slade ask behind him.

"No… no I'm going in early… I have some filing to do…" Robin said and stood up.

"You have been working a lot lately," Slade pointed out.

"Yeah… busy…"

"How about dinner tonight? To celebrate the dropped charges?" Slade suggested.

"Sounds nice," Robin smiled and turned around. "It will feel good to put all of this behind us… can you get us a table? You pick where."

"Of course," the man nodded and stretched. "Sure you don't want to stay in bed, though?"

"The devil takes tempting-lessons from you, doesn't he?" the young man chuckled. "But no. I have to hit the shower or BB will complain about me smelling like you again…"

* * *

Robin put the last file through the shredder. It was a copy and the Titans made sure to destroying them after each case. The morning had been quiet so far.

"Your aura has some serious skid marks," Raven's voice suddenly said behind him.

"Rae!" Robin first gasped and then started to laugh. "Did Speedy come up with that one?"

"He did, actually. I, after all, am a lady," the empath smiled one of her small, rare smiles. "Something is bothering you, though. Something big. I thought it was the trial, but I heard the news yesterday… didn't they drop it after all?"

"They did."

"Then… what?"

"I…. I don't know, Rae… I…" Robin shook his head and sighed.

"Tea?" the woman suggested.

"Yeah… make mine a double…" her leader muttered darkly.

A short time later they were sitting in the kitchen. The two of them were the only ones on duty that morning, and Robin usually enjoyed the peace that brought, but, right now, it was too quiet. Raven obviously was waiting for him to start.

"I… well, there's something I didn't tell you…"

"About the dead man?" Raven frowned. "It wasn't self defense?"

"Oh, it was!" Robin hurriedly said "I wouldn't have held something like that back, but… just after it happened… Slade wanted to get rid of the body."

Raven only raised her eyebrows slightly, so Robin went on, telling her everything that had happened.

"Well… not the most moral thing to go, perhaps, but maybe understandable…" Raven said after thinking it over. "It was not easy for him to clean up his reputation."

"I know… and he did it for _me_…" the black-haired teen sighed. "I _know_ that, but…"

"He suggested something that, in his eyes, would make sure nothing would threaten your relationship," the empath nodded.

"Yes, but…"

"But?"

"He… it was like he… he wasn't even _sorry_, Raven! He didn't check the man's pulse or _anything_, and… well, when he said what he did, it was just like…" Robin ran his hand though his hair and put his elbows on the table, leaning his head in his hands. "… it was like he was… back. The old Slade. The mercenary… the… the…"

"Criminal?"

"Yes."

"Whatever made you believe he had left?"

Robin looked up at his perceptive friend with wide eyes.

"Huh?"

"People change their behavior, not who they are. Slade changed his behavior to reach a goal: you. Did you expect the wolf to run into a Labradoodle puppy?"

"No! But I expected him to… to… well…"

"To stop thinking the way he has been used to for longer then you have been alive?"

Robin tore at his hair a bit and then slumped completely down on the table.

"I'm being an idiot, aren't I? I'm being unfair?"

"No."

Again Robin looked up in surprise.

"I'm not?"

"No… but I think you have unrealistic expectations when it comes to Slade."

"So… I should… get a reality check?"

"Yes… and figure out if you can live him the way he is… because he's not going to change."

"What if… what if I can't?"

"You will have to tell him."

"I'm so fucked, aren't I?"

"I wouldn't know about that," Raven smirked again. "You never let me watch."

* * *

The dinner had been amazing… he thought. It had looked good but tasted like paper. Robin was poking at his dessert while Slade was enjoying a glass of red wine.

"Are you going to eat it or torture it to death?" the man chuckled.

"Huh?"

"Something is bothering you, Robin, I can tell. Spill."

"Yeah, Slade, we… we need to talk," Robin sighed.

"Oh-oh."

"Yeah, I… I talked to Raven today, and…"

"What did she say?" the man's eye narrowed a little.

"Oh, don't worry, she was on your side," Robin muttered.

"Smart girl. Now to be clear; what_ is_ my side?"

"It's just… okay… here goes… I don't know if I want… no _can_, be together with a person who won't call the police after killing someone!" Robin said, keeping his voice down.

"You want to date an idiot?" Slade smirked.

"See! There you go again!" the teen exclaims, louder this time.

"It was only a joke, Robin."

"But was it really? You thought I _was_ being an idiot that night!"

"I thought you might be doing something that jeopardized our relationship… I was worried," Slade told him firmly.

"Yes, but… well, you should be worried about the law too! About justice!"

"I think it was rather clear that I was," the man deadpanned.

"Well, what about doing the right thing then?" Robin asked.

"Ah," was all the man said to that.

"Well?" Robin insisted after a moment of silence.

"Well, our perceptions differ here," Slade said after a while. "The 'right thing' as you call it, is so often the 'stupid thing'."

"I thought you'd say that…" Robin got up from his chair and placed a couple of bills on the table. "I have to think things over, Slade… I… I'll sleep at the Tower tonight… I'll see you tomorrow."

He left the place quickly, his eyes burning.

* * *

When Robin returned to the flat after his shift the next day Slade was there waiting for him.

"So… how did the thinking go?" Slade asked after a few moments of silence.

"Not so good…" Robin mumbled. "The thing is… it's not you… it's me…"

The man snorted loudly.

"That was an old one… and that took you all night?"

"No, but listen…" Robin said, sinking down on the couch. "I… I know you have changed for me… or your deeds, anyway… and I feel like such an asshole, but…"

"It's not enough?" the man asked, his voice very level.

"It should be!"

"I am confused… who am I having this fight with?" Slade asked.

"We're not having a fight, we're having a… a… thing."

"I don't like when we have things," the man said solemnly, but his eye glittered a little bit, letting Robin know that he was playing a fool on purpose.

"This is serious, Slade…" the teen sighed again. "You are good to me, you _are_… I have nothing to complain about, trust me, nothing, but… I had no idea your sense of morality was still so crooked! Have you lots of hidden bodies laying around? What if that man had been an innocent, in an accident? Or even a friend? Would you have suggested the same thing? Hide the body? Forget it ever happened?" Robin didn't expect a reply, and he didn't get one either. Slade didn't like to play the would-have-could-have-should-have game.

"And what of other things?" Robin asked. "Smaller things… if you could hide a body, what else can you, would you even_ prefer_ to, hide?"

"I think I make better coffee than you."

"What?"

"That's it. The biggest secret I'm keeping from you at this point in time… I prefer my own coffee. I've told you all else."

"Thank you. I believe you, Slade, so… thank you… but what about the future… can I trust that you will do the_ right_ thing, even though you think it's the _stupid_ choice?"

"I don't know," the man shrugged.

"I don't either…" Robin pulled up his legs and sat hugging his knees. "Maybe… maybe we should take a break… maybe… see other people…"

"If you need a break, Robin, then I can agree to that… but seeing other people… that is stupid," the man growled. "Unless you already have someone in mind? Have you fallen for one of your hero-friends? Someone so true and good his farts smell like flowers?"

"No, Slade I haven't met anyone! What the hell!" the teen exclaimed.

"Good, because let me tell you, Robin… someone like that would bore you to tears in a month. I'll leave you to pack, unless you plan to stay here?" the man said, striding towards the door.

"No, I'll stay at the Tower," Robin mumbled.

"Fine. I'll get my things when you have left."

"_Your_ things? But Slade, aren't' you going to stay here? I… we're… we're just taking a break right?"

"Right…" the man said, his voice so cold it sent shivers up Robin's arms, "but I'm sure as hell not going to take it in Jump."

* * *

Slade was gone for a week and then Robin got a text message saying that he had taken a mission in Angola and would be gone at least two months. At the same time Batman asked for some extra support in Gotham's neighboring city Blüdhaven, and Robin, needing to get away, took not only the job but also a new alias.

It had been six months since their 'break' when Robin, known locally as Nightwing, got another text message.

"Tai Pak, Eight o'clock. /S"

Robin blinked. Tai Pak was the Asian restaurant around the corner… Slade was in Blüdhaven? True, the teen had not tried to hide his tracks, both his friends and Batman knew where he was, if someone should ask. If _Slade _should ask. Robin had long since admitted that he wanted him to. He didn't know if the break had been a mistake. He didn't think that he would have been able to just go on without some kind of confrontation, but he had learned a few things these past months… the teen jumped into the shower as Slade hadn't left him much time, his heart beating faster. Was Slade here to tell him that he had met someone new? To break it off for real? Or were they already broken up?

He arrived fifteen minutes early. No Slade, but then again… he was early. The next ten minutes were torture, but then the man walked in five to eight and Robin shot to his feet without realizing it at first.

"Slade, I-"

"No." The man's voice cut him off and Robin felt like a knife stabbing into his gut. "I want to show you something first."

Slade pulled out his cell phone and handed it to the teen. "I've changed my contact-list. You might want to take a look."

Dread filled the teen when he opened the right menu, and then he stared at it. A smile started to spread on his face and then he let out a small, sob-like chuckle and flew into the man's arms.

They stayed at the restaurant to eat and talk about the last couple of months.

"When I got back and you were gone, I thought it was over," Slade admitted. "But then I found out you kept our apartment…"

"I did," Robin admitted. "Why… why didn't you contact me?"

"I thought that was up to you… you were the one who needed to think, after all…" Slade said calmly.

"Yeah I guess…" Robin nodded, feeling very stupid. "But you left, though…"

"Been working abroad a lot… took on a few big missions, very well paying ones…"

"Ones you couldn't take when you were with me," Robin nodded in understanding.

"Didn't _want_ to take, Robin. Important difference."

"Oh… yeah…" the teen smiled a little. "I've learned a few things over here, by the way…" he said.

"Better not be anything sexual…" the man threatened.

"No! No, I haven't… have _you_?"

"Of course not."

"Good… good…." Robin sagged with relief. "No I learned a few things about… the law."

"Oh? Pray tell."

"Well… on my first couple of missions I was almost shot dead three times. By the police. They've tried to arrest me, people have tried to sue me… after the first few times I stopped hanging around waiting for the cops to show up… I just wrote a statement on a note."

"But Robin, evidence like that doesn't always stand up in court…" Slade said smoothly, with just a hint of a sing-song voice.

"No… but doing the right thing was just stupid…"

"Aha!"

"Well, sometimes!" Robin grinned. "And yes, I get it now… I grew up in Gotham where Batman knew the police and I always had him to act as a buffer… and then in Jump, well we were the city _symbols_… I knew most of the police force by name… to me, making that call was nothing, but to you…"

"I should perhaps have had more trust in you, though," the man admitted.

"Yes, in that situation I still feel calling it in was the right thing to do… I don't want to find any bodies in the fridge in the future, alright?"

"Of course not… dumpster in the alley it is…" Slade smirked. "Now… It just happens that I've had the longest dry spell since I hit puberty… so how about we go up to your place?" the man suggested.

"As if by coincidence, so have I…" Robin snickered. "Fine, we'll go, but first… would it be okay with you to live here on the East coast for a while? Not forever or anything, but I think I owe this place a few more months…"

"I can work anywhere… besides, it would annoy Batman."

"We'll add that to the plus-side then…" Robin grinned. As they left, Robin grabbed Slade's phone which was still laying on the table, and smiled as he saw the contact list. The top three read:

1. Robin

2. Police

3. Lawyer

_The End_

* * *

A/N: When I first decided to take up this prompt, which was "Robin breaks up with Slade" (including "it's not you, it's me") I had pictured it with Slade going crazy and… killing all the Titans or something… but I couldn't do it! They had been together for quite some time, and Slade, although he could, of course, react violently, wouldn't go full-out crazy… well.. this version wouldn't anyway… and, as I said, Raven kinda wrecked my initial arguments about him being dangerous, so… -sigh- I still kept it in the dark-category though, because it still turned out quite serious…


	17. 17 Impossiblue

A/N: Merry Christmas **noirakasha!**

This is actually an idea and a prompt-word merged into one story… It's VERY fluffy and it's a bit smutty… It's not very long, I'm afraid, but any more and the dark-lover's teeth would fall out… ;)

…and no, I didn't misspell the title…. ;)

* * *

**Impossiblue **

Soft kisses were dotting his skin, making the young man arch his neck so the man could reach more of it. He laughed softly when his lover's beard tickled him and turned his head to catch those talented lips with his own.

They were naked on the large bed in a rented cabin far away from civilization and its prying eyes. Also a long way from any judgment and any expectations. They had arrived yesterday, around lunch, but not until the evening had Robin been able to relax enough and just let everything go… including his clothes.

"I loved the hot-tub last night…" he purred.

"Yes… sitting in warm water looking up at the starry winter sky... snow all around…" Slade mumbled back. "Not bad…"

"You sounded really romantic there…" Robin grinned.

"I am, you know," the man claimed.

"What? You're not just a horny beast? Now I'm disappointed!" the teen exclaimed, his blue eyes wide with fake shock and indignation.

"Oh, I can be one of those too…" the man smirked and was suddenly on top of the teen, kissing him more hungrily.

"Mercy!" the teen panted when the man let him breathe freely again…. "Mercy, my beast…"

"Well, then I'll be romantic again, then…" the man chuckled and caught one of the young man's hands, kissing the top of it.

"Mmmm… okay… romantic can be nice, I guess…" the teen purred.

"You guess? I've been _very_ romantic… how else did I woo you?" the man asked.

"Woo?" Robin giggled. "And romantic? When?"

"I gave you that large bouquet of criminals, remember?" Slade said, between kissing each of the teen's fingers.

"Oh, yes… wasn't there a poem…?" Robin grinned a bit breathlessly.

"Cinderblock's gray, Mumbo is blue, Red X is a thief, and so are you…" Slade recited and nipped one of the teen's fingertips with his teeth.

"The team got really confused over that one…" the hero purred.

"They didn't understand I meant you stole my heart?" the man said smugly.

"Nope, they thought I'd been moonlighting as Red X again for a while, and then they decided that you were just crazy…" Robin snickered.

"Well, so did you… that was hurtful you know…" the man said and almost managed a puppy-dog pout.

"Can I help it that I'm not accustomed to suitors?" Robin asked. "It took you forcing me on that date to make me realize that you were serious…oohh…" Slade had sucked one of his fingers into his mouth and was doing some amazing things with his tongue to boot.

"The only candlelit dinner I've ever been on where my partner was there under gunpoint…" Slade reminisced after letting the digit go.

"Was no gun present during the goodnight kiss, though…" Robin smiled. "And speaking about that…" he reached for the man's neck and pulled him down for another slow, sensual kiss.

"Hmmm… me thinks the lady likes romance…" Slade teased him.

"Yes… but the mercenary will get the nuts crushed if he calls the hero' the lady' again…" the teen said pleasantly.

"Noted."

"He may still be romantic, though?" Robin prompted.

"Always," Slade claimed with a smirk. "Let me speak about your eyes, my la-little bird…" he started.

"Close call there… but go on…" Robin grinned.

"Their color, like tanzanite, put the summer sky to shame, and clearly the sun and the stars of the heavens would rather shine in them than their pale, dull home. The depth of the oceans seems shallow compared to the impossible blue of those living gems, and the-"

"Stop! Stop!" Robin was laughing almost hysterically by now. "Oh god, how do you come up with these things?"

"Only telling the truth…" the man smiled and kissed the tip of the teen's nose.

"You are going to get laid a _lot_ on this trip, you know that right?" Robin purred.

"I sure hope so…" the man leered.

"You really think my eyes are nice, though?" the teen asked, a bit unsure if it had all been a joke on Slade's part.

"They are absolutely gorgeous… You should consider fighting crime without a mask, because no one could resist them…" the man claimed. "As I said… they are impossibly blue…"

"Impossiblue…" Robin snickered.

"Yes…" The man kissed his neck again, unhurriedly moving down towards the teen's chest where achingly sensitive pink nipples were standing to attention, hoping for kisses of their own.

"I love your eye too, you know…" Robin said as he trailed his fingers through the man's hair.

Slade glanced up at him.

"Is that so..?"

"Yes… I thought it was slate gray at first, but there's blue in there too… it comes out when you laugh… and you might think you have a stone-face, mister, but I can always tell what you're thinking when you look at me…"

"Really? And what am I thinking now?" the man smirked.

"That you don't really believe me and will try to change the subject by distracting me with sex…" Robin chuckled and then pushed himself up. He ended up straddling Slade's lap and put the man's face firmly between the palms of his hands. "You are not only a sexy body and an amazing mind, Slade…" the said softly.

"No, I'm a great lover too…" the man claimed.

Robin chuckled.

"Yes… yes you are… and an amazing fighter, a fearsome enemy and a loyal friend… and you are beautiful… this," Robin softly touched the string of the black eye patch, feeling the man tense under him, "this is only part of what makes you sexy… I like it…"

"Robin…" the man was clearly uncomfortable, but the teen wouldn't let him get away.

"No, you listen to me, or you going to have to get rid of that hard thing between your legs by going out and rolling around in the snow…" he said firmly. "I know you count the loss of your eye as a punishment for your failures, but that was a long time ago, Slade… and did it stop you? Did it make you weaker? No. You trained even harder to overcome it, you became _better_ from it… but only physically, I admit… because the true you never lost an eye, it's still there, and it's starting to come out again… or else I would never be with you. I love you… all of you…" the teen softly kissed the man's lips only to move on to the eye patch. Slowly, slowly he peeled it off, kissing the skin under it as well, and let the patch fall to the bed.

"Now… would _all_ of you please make love to me?" he asked in a whisper.

"As if I could deny you anything…" the man said, and Robin had a feeling he meant it. "There are more impossible things about you than your eyes…"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: I did write Slade's little speech 'by heart' so to speak, but I got suspicious when it was just a little TOO easy and didn't trust myself, so I googled the summer sky-part and yeah… been used a LOT… I didn't recognize any of the sources though… found a lot of fan-fics using it but nothing I've ever read… so I SUSPECT it's from either Shakespeare or a movie/poem or something… or maybe it's just a well known saying? If you know the source for "put the summer sky to shame" let me know, because I'm curious! It's amazing how the memory works, really… If I hadn't been so damn suspicious of my own brain I would have thought I'd come up with it! ;)

The prompt was Tanzanite and the idea for Robin to remove Slade's eye-patch in an erotic way… it turned out to be more fluffy than smexy, but... well… fluffy mood!


	18. 18 Against His Will

A/N: Merry Christmas **Shinigami-chan! **

I let this story-idea run through my mind a couple of times, trying out different scenarios and versions, but this was the one that stuck.

Warning: The title should give you a hint, but brave it if you can… ;)

* * *

**Against His Will**

The whole Tower was buzzing with excitement. Not only was it Christmas in only a week, but Batman was coming for one of his super-secret visits. The ones most excited about this were the ones that didn't know him, however, Robin was mainly irritated.

He knew what this was about; Slade. The man had finally done something to cause a blip on the JL-radar and the 'adults' had been shocked that Robin and his team had been battling such a dangerous criminal… and for years at that! Having turned seventeen that past spring, nothing irked the young man more than parental supervision.

"Will it not be marvelous?" Starfire smiled as she floated by.

"Yeah, great…" Robin muttered.

A few hours later he was seething.

They were all gathered in the lounge, standing around like a class of school-children about to be lectured by teacher Bats.

"You don't seem to understand how dangerous he can be," Batman growled, pinning his ward with one of his famous glares.

"Oh, we know alright! Me more than anyone, trust me!" Robin growled back, "But you have seen our files; we can handle Slade!"

"The fact that he has targeted you only makes him _more_ dangerous, not less," the Dark Knight said. "Don't think that you know him, Robin, and don't think that any familiarity with him makes you safe. He's a killer. He'll go to any lengths to get what he wants, and the Justice League have decided that he needs to be taken down."

"Well, he's been kinda quiet for months now you know…" Cyborg said and scratched his neck. "He's been around but…"

Batman snorted.

"That only means he's planning someth-"

Robin could never describe exactly what happened next… it was like the room exploded, but completely silently, instantly ripping away their consciousnesses.

When he awoke again, he wasn't in pain but he couldn't move. He glanced to the side, as he couldn't turn his head much, and saw his friends and his mentor standing, just like he did, their wrists, ankles, necks and waists held to the metal wall by some kinds of gently buzzing thick steel bonds.

"What… Titans? Batman?" he called out, relieved to see the others stir just a little. Their belts were gone, and his as well, he noticed, along with his and Batman's gloves. Someone seemed to know where they kept their hidden weapons and gadgets.

"Relax Robin… your little friends will be just fine in a few moments… and daddy bats too…" he heard Slade's voice say, just as the man walked into his line of vision. "Which reminds me…" the man produced something that looked like a rolled up tool-kit and unfolded it. It held five syringes, all marked with a different color. The man walked up to Beast Boy first and jammed the green-labeled needle deep into the young teen's arm. The changeling whimpered a bit and then started to groan as he woke up.

"Owww… ow, that… hurts… what…? …S-slade?"

Robin saw how his teammate instantly tried to change, but even though he first seemed to stretch, he almost audibly _snapped_ back to his normal shape.

Slade paid him no mind, but continued to administer the shots to all the others, except Robin and Cyborg. When he came to the metal teen he simply opened his chest panel and inserted a chip, which made all the visible electrical lights dim to almost nothing.

Then Slade turned to Robin.

"We'll wait with yours for a bit, I think…" the man chuckled. "Until we have an audience…"

One by one the Titans regained consciousness, but, try as they might, they couldn't access any of their powers.

"What is the intention of this?" Star yelled as she struggled, feeling weak as a kitten.

"Yeah, let us go!" Beast Boy growled, wishing he could _be_ a kitten.

"Man… I'm…" Cyborg mumbled, half his body immobile. Although he had his human strength it was nothing against the metal bonds.

"I hate… to say… I told you so…" Batman mumbled.

"No, you don't…" Robin snorted. "Guys, Slade injected you with something… Cy, there's a chip in your chest… try to find a way around it! You can do it!"

"I very much doubt that. The injections and the chip have all been custom made for you. I've even made sure Batman don't carry an antidote to his drug… are you feeling a bit weak and woozy, Bat? Don't worry, you won't pass out… I wouldn't want you to miss this…"

"If you hurt any of them…" Robin hissed.

"Oh, but I won't… after all, I've come for_ you_."

"If you lay a finger on him…" Batman snarled, although his voice was weak.

"Would you like to continue that sentence? I'm curious, as I _do_ plan to lay a finger on him… and more than that… but first…" the man put down the syringe-kit on the nearby kitchen counter and then turned to face them all. "Let me introduce myself…"

Robin, as well as the rest of the group, besides Batman, gasped as Slade took off his metal mask, revealing a hard, chiseled face with white hair and a short, neatly trimmed beard.

"My name is Slade Wilson. I thought it was time we met face to face…"

"Well, good, now we can update the wanted posters…" Robin snorted.

"You think people will believe that Slade looks like a mix of Santa and a pirate?" Beast Boy piped up boldly, making Robin snicker.

"Well, that means he can work at the mall both at Christmas and Halloween…" Raven deadpanned.

"Laugh while you can…" Slade said calmly. "It won't be so easy soon enough…"

"What do you want, Slade?" Robin asked outright.

"As I said. You."

"He will not join you and we, his friends, will not let him go!" Starfire said with conviction. "We will not abandon him no matter what your threats may be!"

The other Titans shouted their agreement and Robin smirked.

"See, Slade? And I'll fight you every step of the way… you won't succeed. I'd rather die than become your apprentice!"

"Right now, yes… but not in a few minutes…" the man smirked and held up the last syringe.

"What is that?" Batman growled.

"This is my special Robin-concoction…" Slade smirked. "It will make him loyal to me… _very_ loyal. In fact, it will make him… _want _me."

"Wh-what? What do you mean?" the teen leader gasped, fighting the metal constraints even harder.

"Lust, Robin… lust and obedience…"

"No!"

All the heroes had either yelled out or gasped at once, Robin and Batman's voices being the most prominent.

"He's a _child _you sick bastard!" Batman growled.

"A child, hmm…? Isn't it a pity that he still sees you as one, Robin?" the man said and walked in front of the teen, tracing his chest with his fingers. "He's soon eighteen, Bat. He's old enough… and you have to be blind not to appreciate how gorgeous he is…"

Robin blushed deeply, glaring at the man before spitting in his face.

"Go to hell, Slade! I'd rather fuck Mammoth than you!"

"I bet, but this will make you change your mind…" the man leered and came closer again after wiping his face. He took a hold of the teen's arm and touched the cold tip of the needle to it. "Don't worry, Robin… I'll be gentle…" he purred as he pushed it into the teen's flesh.

"I won't work!" Robin snarled.

"It will… but it's not permanent, of course… no, that will take many injections… this one will simply put your hormones into overdrive and make you slightly more pliant… especially physically… and soon you won't be able to fight me at all, Robin…. ahhh… is someone starting to feel a little hot under the collar, perhaps?" the man chuckled, seeing the teen's flushed skin and slightly glassy eyes.

"Go… away…" Robin hissed.

"Don't you dare touch him!" Batman warned the white haired man.

"Is that all you can say?" Slade asked. "Oh, yes, I guess it is… you can threaten and yell and curse all you want… but you can't stop _this_," The man grabbed Robin's jaw, tilted his head back and kissed him deeply.

"You _sick_-!"

"_NO_!"

"Stop!"

"Do not dare to-"

"I think I'm gonna throw up…"

The shocked audience exclaimed their disgust, but the only thing heard from Robin was a faint moan.

Slade single eye glittered as he straightened up, looking down at the black-haired teen, whose eyes were half closed, wet lips parted and slightly swollen, cheeks tinted pink and breath coming in short gasps.

"You liked that Robin… didn't you?"

"N-no…" the teen murmured.

"Oh, don't deny it… although you are going to, I guess… for now. In a few days or so, though…"

"…n-no… no… never…"

"Aww… that's so sweet. You know what, Robin, I'm going to let you go… and if you can fight off the injection long enough, you might just get away," Slade said and then all the metal pinning Robin to the wall fell away at once.

The teen's knees hit the floor hard, but he fought his way back up to his feet.

He suspected that he wouldn't have a chance in hell by himself, but if he could free the others… as soon as he made a first move towards his colleges, however, Slade stepped in front of him and then Robin found himself flying through the air, crashing into the kitchen cabinets.

"Ah-ah-ah… no playing with your friends, just with_ me_…" Slade told him.

"Fine!" Robin snarled and picked up a knife.

"Oh, perfect," the man nodded. "Now we'll test the serum for sure… come closer, boy, don't be shy. You can't stab me from over there…"

Robin did shuffle closer. His limbs didn't really want to work as they should, but he wasn't completely helpless, and Slade would find that out soon enough, the teen decided.

"You don't want that knife, Robin," the man said suddenly.

The teen blinked. He didn't?

"You want to touch something more exciting that a knife, don't you? Drop it, and come here…"

Robin felt the handle slip a bit.

"Don't do it, Robin! Don't drop it!" Batman barked, fighting his bonds violently for a moment before slumping.

"I… I…" Robin said.

"Forget the knife, Robin… come… don't you wonder what my skin feels like? You've never touched it with your hands before, you know… an old kitchen knife, what's so exciting about that?"

"I… yeah… I…" the teen hesitated, but then he let the knife fall, to the objections of the others. He took a few steps closer to Slade until he was just within touching-distance.

"Do it… you need to, don't you? The need _burns_ inside you… it's not just curiosity… you _have_ to touch me… you have to find out what it's like…"

"Dude, don't listen to him!" Someone screamed, but Robin didn't much care who. He lifted his hand slowly and placed it on the man's chest.

"Good boy… closer… you need to. You need _me_…" Slade waited until Robin was pressed against him before touching the young man himself.

"Robin! Please wake up! Please! We are your friends, not this man! He is evil, Robin!" a crying voice begged, and Robin shook his head a little.

"I'm not… not going to let him… do… anything…" he claimed, his voice dazed.

"He's holding you! Get away!"

Robin shook his head harder, trying to clear it, and then began pushing against Slade's chest.

"Why fight it, when you want me so badly? You're hard, Robin… shall we show your little surrogate family how hard you are?"

Robin found himself being spun around, held against his enemy's chest with one arm, as the man's free hand started to massage the bulge stretching the teen's tights.

"I'll kill you! Stop it! Stop!"

It wasn't Robin objecting, though… although the teen pushed a little at the man's hand, his head lolled back and he moaned.

"Yes, scream all you want," Slade told the helpless audience. "It only helps to prove my point. He will soon be under my influence _permanently_… no drugs will be needed then, and no amount of your begging will bring him back. He knows who you are, he understands what you are saying… he just doesn't _care_…" The teen in his arms whimpered a little and the man chuckled. "Aw, is it starting to get uncomfortable? Poor baby… let me help you get those off…" To a crescendo of new protests and threats the man pulled the green tights down to the middle of Robin's thighs, exposing him completely. "Now… how would you like to suck some cock, my boy? Wouldn't you want that? The taste will be like nothing you've ever had before, I bet… you'll love it. Yes? Good… fall to your knees then…" the man said and let the hero go.

Robin found his legs buckling. Something had been promised to him if he kneeled… something sounding so very, very good, but he wasn't sure what.

"Turn this way, sweetheart, let's give them a nice view… I'm not shy and neither are you, are you? You're such a pretty boy, Robin…"

The teen felt himself mentally preen. The voice, the wonderful voice which reverberated through his whole body had praised him… it was so easy to tune out the yells and screams… even the ones coming from inside himself.

"Open that pretty mouth now, Robin… do it…" the voice said.

The teen was about to, but something held him back, and he glanced over at his old mentor who seemed to be crying for some reason.

"B-batman?" he mumbled, frowning a little. What was happening?

"_No_, Robin…_ bad_ boy…" the voice said and roughly turned his head back by his hair. "Open up."

This time Robin did, and the pinkish-purple _thing_ in front of him slid into his mouth.

"Good boy… lick and suck now… make sure you really enjoy your first taste of cock… because I assume Batman never had you suck him off? No, I didn't think so… you have no idea what you've missed, Bat… well, you snooze you lose, I guess… That's it, Robin, you're a natural, bobbing your head up and down like that. Are you trying to swallow me whole, little boy? That's so sweet… It is bit too big for that, though, isn't it? I'm sure it will fit nicely in your ass, though…"

Robin didn't listen, really… he understood what Slade was saying but… well, imagine that you are eating the most amazing candy in the world and someone is talking about the brand or the recipe at the same time… besides, it was the man's _voice _that was the important part to the teen, not his words.

"That's enough, sweetie… stand up… now kiss me," the man ordered, and Robin did, his hands exploring the man's neck and hair curiously. As Slade's lips pulled away from his, Robin tried to follow, making the man chuckle. "No, no, my little bird... I think it's time to fuck you…. oh, listen to your friends, they don't like that idea at all, do they?"

"They… don't?" Robin said, unable to quite grasp that concept.

"No, they don't… but don't let that bother you… lean over this counter here, show off that pretty ass of your… there's a good boy. Now give them a good look while I go and see if you kids have any lubricant I can use…" the man said and left Robin alone, as he rounded the counter and went into the open-plan kitchen.

"Get out of here! Robin! Robin, _listen_ _to me_!" a voice insisted.

The teen lifted his head. It had been resting on his folded arms on the counter, quite comfortably.

"Slade will hurt you!" another voice shouted.

"He'll rape you, man, wake up!"yet another claimed.

"I… I don't want…. want him to…" Robin mumbled.

"Hell no, you don't!" someone snorted. "Get this chip out of my chest and I'll nuke his ass!"

"Cy…borg?"

"Yeah, Rob! It's me! Listen to me! Run, okay! Just run!"

"What do you think works best; olive oil or sunflower oil?" Slade voice asked pleasantly, getting only profanities as an answer. "Yes, you're right… olive oil… it's extra virgin, after all, perfect for out little Robin…"

"Slade… I… I don't want to…" the teen said hesitantly.

"There, there…" the man said calmly, pouring some of the oil into a small bowl, which he placed next to Robin's arms. "If you didn't want it, would you still stand here, pushing that pert little ass out like that?"

"I… please… I…"

"What?"

"I… I don't know…" Robin said helplessly.

"But this does," the man said and reached down to stroke the teen's still hard, dripping member. Robin's mind was instantly drenched in a wave of pleasure, making him forget his doubts.

"Now, dear audience, should I prepare him, do you think? No? So I should just fuck him at once? You are cruel, aren't you? Well, little lady, what do you say?" the man asked Raven. "Should I prepare him or not?"

"You…" the young woman growled. "…yes."

"You are a good friend, clearly…" the man said and dipped his fingers I the cool oil. "One finger first, perhaps?"

Robin squirmed a little as a digit pushed into him. It felt strange and cold and he didn't like it.

"Good boy, Robin… you want this. In fact you want more, don't you?" the man purred.

"I… don't… don't know…" Robin mumbled. It was all so strange. On one hand, Slade was being fantastic, but on the other his friends seemed to be crying and screaming for the man to stop, and that was weird, wasn't it? As another finger pushed in, however, his mind focused fully on the feeling instead of his surroundings.

"Turn your head and look at your friends… I want them to see your face when I push into you," Slade said a while later. Robin was panting by now, pushing back against the three fingers stretching him, wordlessly begging for more.

The teen turned his head as asked, his serene mind unable to grasp the tortured expression on the other's faces.

"All of you watch now, _all_ of you, or I am going to enter him roughly… look unless you want me to tear him," the man said in that deep, pleasant voice.

"You are a monster!" Starfire sobbed.

"Well, yes…" Slade chuckled. "And soon your little Robin will be one too… but first… he'll be a good, tight fuck."

With that he pushed in, and Robin cried out, both in pain and surprise. It all got better fast, however, and soon the man was pounding into him as he moaned. Over the next half hour Slade fucked him from behind, on the floor right below the Titans, and on his back on a table.

"It's time to show them how much you love this, Robin," the man finally said. "Come for me, sweetie…"

Robin couldn't resist the command and arched his back as he cried out in ecstasy. Slade joined him simultaneously with a few grunts.

"Such a good boy…" the man praised him. "It's time to leave, however. Want to say goodbye to your friends? No? Ah, well… there, better pull those tights up… wouldn't want you to be embarrassed, after all…" the man chuckled and, after helping Robin, tucked himself in.

Slade held him in a firm grip, almost carrying him, out of the room. Robin looked back towards his friends and tried to say something, but he didn't know what. Next thing he knew he was in the elevator and then in a car, which sped off. Slade suddenly pulled into a building.

"Quickly," the man said. "The bonds will release them in fifteen minutes."

"Where's the other car?" Robin asked and Slade pointed. "Okay, let's go then, old man," the teen smirked.

"You have just pretended to get raped in front of your team, are you asking for _more _punishment, you little masochist?" the man smirked, throwing him a plastic bag. "Change of clothes, a wig and a baseball cap… hurry up," he ordered as he started to pull his own armor off.

"Oh, you know I'm a bit… _twisted_, Slade," the teen snickered as he changed.

"And not just a _bit_… but that's why I love you… getting off on getting watched…" the man chuckled, shaking his head to himself as they quickly got into the new car. "Wonderful performance by the way, I almost thought you were drugged myself…"

"What was in the needle?" the teen asked

"Vitamins."

"You're so good to me…" Robin snickered. "And besides, this wasn't about my fantasies, it was a good plan!" he added.

"Of course you'd think so; it was _yours_…" Slade smirked.

"Yes, and it was brilliant… now not only my team but Batman himself are convinced that I'm under mind-control… which means that if they catch up to us, they will _expect _me to fight on your side, and if things go really bad and we get caught… well, I can just pretend to respond to any treatment and then, when I can, I'll come for you…"

"My own little get out of jail free-card…" Slade chuckled as he took to the streets again through a secret tunnel leading to the streets through another building. "I like it…"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: thank you **Shinigami-chan **for that twist… ;) And yes, Robin is one fucked up, cruel SOB in this… ain't it fun? To do that to his team… sheeesh… but, hey, if you really wanna be with Slade… you apparently need to be publicly raped… I don't know, but I thought the idea was too good to miss… ;)


	19. 19 Waking Up In Vegas

A/N: Merry Christmas **Roxxanne Spinner**

This request was for a song-fic to the song "Waking up in Vegas" by Katie Perry… but I don't really do song-fics. Well, I don't do the kind of song-fics where the story is interrupted for a line or two of the real lyrics, continues, is interrupted again… you know… or where one of the characters starts to SING… Slade would rather be a bunny forever. BUT writing a fic INSPIRED by the lyrics; fine, and when I listened to the song I could actually picture the kind of drabble Roxxanne wanted… AND, just to entertain myself, I actually DID put a lot of the lyrics into the conversation… Don't expect it to be word for word all the time, or in order, it's just so that, if you know the song, you will probably go "aha!" and if you don't, you won't notice it (hopefully) so it won't bother you… everybody wins! ;)

Except if you don't like established relationships and a bit of fluff…

* * *

**Waking Up In Vegas**

Robin moaned softly and rolled over. The light was coming from the wrong side of the bed, and that wasn't the only thing that was wrong with it.

"Why's… bright…?" he muttered.

"A little hung-over, Robin?" a voice next to him chuckled, but it sounded much more raspy than usual.

"No… _you're_ hung over, I'm… yeah… I'm hung over too…" Robin realized. He slowly rolled out of bed, and the fact that Slade's hand failed to grab him in time was a sure sign that the man didn't feel very fresh either.

"Just gonna… and… water…" Robin mumbled and shuffled to the bathroom.

After a little while he was back.

"Brought you a glass…" he told Slade, sounding a bit more like he had rejoined the living by now.

"Of what?"

"What do you think? Water," the teen sighed.

"Love you…" Slade said and snatched the glass up, draining it.

Robin chuckled and collapsed on the bed again.

"So… you gotta help me out… it's all a blur… Last night…?"

"I remember…" Slade started. "I remember us standing by a slot-machine… and we won…"

"Yeah! Wait… why the hell did we even gamble? We were just passing through! He were staying at that little motel just outside… wait! You lost the key!"

"That explains why we're not in the motel-room, then… Slade said, raising his head and looking around. "Well... this is better…"

"Yeah, this has to be the presidential suit or something…" the younger man agreed. "Okay… so we hit the casinos…"

"We were just going to ask if they had a lost and found as we had passed the place on our way to dinner," Slade reminded him.

"Good thing I had a fake ID, right?" the teen grinned.

"'Had' being the key word here…" Slade said dryly.

"What? Oh, no…"

"Yes… you lost that too… but it wasn't surprising seeing as I, at one point, saw you jamming it into the cleavage on a dancing girl…" the man growled.

"I thought she was an ATM!"

"And why would you put your ID in an ATM?" Slade asked.

"I… have no idea."

"I should never have let you drink."

"Hey! The place offered us free shots when we won; I was entitled to celebratory drink!" Robin objected.

"Yes, but maybe not ten in a row."

"… did you do body shots off of me?"

"Might have."

"Oh, that was hot!"

"You barely remember it!"

"I remember it was hot…" Robin grinned and pulled the man closer for a kiss. When he slid his hands up the man's chest he suddenly stopped. "Uh… Slade… did we get _hitched_ last night?"

"I remember an Elvis telling us to kiss…?" Slade admitted.

"What's with this ring?" the teen said and waved his hand in front of Slade's face. The man had to catch his hand to peer down on it which took a few tries.

"That's my West Point class ring… You know that… I wear it on a chain…"

"Unless you are marrying poor, unsuspecting heroes…" Robin pouted.

"It's only Vegas…" Slade started.

"Nope. You married me, so now you're stuck with me. Can't wait to tell Batman!" Robin grinned. "But first you have to make the wedding night up to me, because I can't remember much of it… oh, and stop with those dirty looks!"

"Well, don't mention Batman when we're in bed together…" Slade half growled, half pleaded. "He trusted me with you… he'll have my balls for this…"

"Then you better use 'em while you have 'em!" Robin grinned and threw a leg over the man's hip, pulling himself close. "It's not like he didn't know we were seeing each other…"

"I think getting you drunk, letting you gamble and marrying you might be going too far… you're only eighteen, you're only allowed to do _one_ of those things…"

"So let's just admit to that, then…" Robin grinned and admired the chunky ring.

"Do you think he'll kill me _less_ for that?"

"Might kill you quicker… besides, wasn't it neutering you he was supposed to do?"

"Same thing."

"Awww… unless he cuts your cock off, I'm fine…" Robin smirked.

"You little brat…" the man growled and rolled on top of him.

"It's 'my dear husband' now, you know…" Robin reminded him.

"The little missus…" the man smirked

"Hey!"

"How is my young bride this morning, I wonder?" Slade smirked wider and slid his hand down the teen's naked chest and stomach. None of them were wearing a single item of clothing. "Mmm… hard and aching…"

"Not for long if you keep calling me… aaahhh… mmm… yes…."

"What was that…?"

"Nnnnnnothing… nothing…. c-call me AAAH-anything… you… want…" Robin moaned. Slade had a special thing he did with his hand that made the teen give up any argument. That was why he usually made sure they argued with their clothes on.

"I'm planning to…" the man purred. "Heh…. "

"What?"

"You have glitter in your pubes… pink glitter…"

"You have glitter in your _beard_… I wonder what _that _could mean?" Robin smirked.

"Not much of a detective, are you?" Slade grinned. "Let's see if we can recreate the event, shall we?"

"MMmmm yes… let's…." Robin moaned as the man moved down a little further. "Oh god, yes! You, my dear husband, really knows how to suck cock…"

"Want some practice, sweetie?" the man asked.

"I bet I could make you come faster…" the teen grinned.

"Care to put your money where your mouth is? Or rather, put your mouth on my cock?"

"I never back down from a challenge…" Robin chuckled.

"Not even one you uttered yourself…" Slade said dryly and sat up on his knees. "Now, let's see about getting you in position…" he said and turned the teen around so he, still on his back, was laying with his head just below the man's crotch as Slade covered him, resting on his hands and knees.

"But I wanna be on top…" Robin complained.

"Your challenge; I get to set the rules," Slade told him and bent down to lick the tip of the teen's shaft.

"I'm so gonna get a crick in my neck from this…" Robin muttered.

"Cock in throat is the aim, not anything else," Slade reminded him.

The teen snorted and raised his head so he could lick along the underside of the man's cock. He had to grip the base of it to aim it a little downwards to he could reach.

They both took competing very, very seriously which is why it took half an hour for the bet to come to a conclusion. Robin turned the right side up in bed and collapsed on the man's chest.

"Tie?"

"Tie," Slade confirmed.

They recuperated in bed for another hour, but then it started to get dark outside. They had slept for most of the day.

"Sooo… where are we going to go tonight?" Robin grinned.

"What do you mean? We're going to cash out and get the hell out of this town," Slade said. "It was your idea to drive to Gotham for Christmas, and if we stay here, we might miss it."

"Oh, don't be a baby, Slade…" Robin teased. "We're partners in crime here… and we're in Vegas, we can at least have one more day of fun! You owe me a honeymoon!"

"You lost your ID, remember?"

"Wasn't my only one. Now get up and let's get this glitter off… You got me into this, and we're gonna tear up the town!"

"Do you really mean to drag me through this hell one more night?" Slade groaned.

"Well…" Robin grinned. "That's what you get for waking up in Vegas!"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Too short? Nah, but I love these kind of stories, because it lets your imagination run wild… how did they get together? What happened before this? Are they gonna celebrate Christmas with Bruce and Alfred? Are they ever going to get out of Vegas? Are they really married? Where did the glitter come from? What else did Robin mistake for an ATM-machine? ;) So many questions and only your brain to answer them… aaawww… ;) Don't get a headache! –grins and ducks-


	20. 20 Animal I Have Become

A/N: Merry Christmas **YuugiArry**

Do you remember the song fic from yesterday? Well, after finishing that I got another request/idea on the "The Ducklings" Facebook group for another one! So this is based on "Animal I Have Become" by Three Days Grace… which is now on my you tube 'work-playlist'… "work" meaning painting… ;)

As with yesterday there'll be no actual full lyrics, I don't own the title, and so on. Some of the lyrics will be worked into the text, though, but not in order or anything, just like yesterday… ;) This is dark-day, though, and somewhat angsty… so NOT like yesterday… ;)

* * *

**Animal I Have Become**

Slade had_ said_ that he'd learn to like it. He had been right.

Robin had been the man's apprentice for three years now, following him all over the world. Stealing. Killing. Yes, in the last six months he had taken that step as well.

The teen pulled the blanket tighter around himself. It was night. Well… he wasn't sure about that, but it was 'down-time' as Slade called it. A few hours of rest and recuperation. They were hiding in an underground lair at the moment so it didn't matter if the sun should happen to be up. It wouldn't matter anyway; when Slade told him to do something, Robin did it.

He hadn't at the beginning, of course, oh, no… he had fought the man at every turn, trying to run away, thrown food in his masked face, refused to lie down and rest when ordered to… and all that had only helped to break him faster… because when you are hurt, and tired and hungry… eventually you cave. Survival instinct. You can either bite the hand that feeds you or you can eat. You can't have both. Slade made sure to teach him that.

Slade taught him many things. Robin vaguely remembered, after that very first mission, how the man had told him that he would keep wanting the thrill that stealing had brought. He had been right again. Slade taught him to_ live_ on adrenaline, endorphins and testosterone… he could do what he was told and get the high, or he could fail or refuse and be locked up in a bare room for days. Robin had hated that room. It had been completely gray, everything the same shade, including the mattress and blanket. The light was on around the clock, but it was faded and never flickered. Nothing changed in that room. Nothing happened. No sounds penetrated it and, even though it was bare, somehow, when he screamed, there wasn't an echo.

At first he had snorted at that kind of punishment. So, he was locked up? Fine, he could sleep! It was just a vacation to be away from Slade, really… but it got worse and worse each time. He was thrown from a world of excitement and danger into … nothing. And soon he started promise himself that he wouldn't go back there. He still did, a few times after that, but not often. He pleased his Master.

He had his own room in the original lair. A small one with just a bed, but it was his. Slade knocked before entering. It had struck Robin as funny first, but he had found himself appreciating it. Being grateful for it.

When traveling he didn't have a room most of the time, but neither did Slade. Sometimes they stayed at motels, but they could also just as well find themselves sleeping under the stars. Whenever they stayed more than one night in one location, Slade made sure that Robin would have at least a corner or a bed to call his own… and again the teen was grateful.

Slade encouraged him to go with his instincts, to act on them, and the way he tricked the teen's mind into craving the rushes of adrenaline, endorphins and other neurotransmitters, made Robin feel like he was slowly becoming less human and more… like an animal. A caged animal, only released and controlled by its Master.

Robin knew that Slade kept him in that mind-cage, and still, whenever the man let him out, he still returned… he _let _himself be locked up… deep inside, he was afraid of himself, afraid of what he had become. Slade was the only one who could control him, tame him… make him purr.

"Awake, Apprentice?"

The voice startled Robin into opening his eyes.

"Yes, Master?"

Their hiding-place right now was in New York and belonged to Slade himself. It was not so big, however, so they were sharing a room.

"Come here."

They were sharing a bed.

As he stated, Slade had taught him many things.

The man wasn't wearing his mask at the present. It had taken almost a year before Robin had seen his face for the first time… and that very night Slade had ordered him to undress and come to his bed.

"Yes, Master," Robin rolled over and got up on his knees, shuffling closer to the man. "What would you like me to do?"

"Listen, for now," the man smirked. The smirk widened as there was a flash of disappointment in the teen's eyes. Robin looked down and blushed. He knew he was Slade's whore, but the sexual release was almost better than the adrenaline rushes sometimes. The man had been very clear about the rule that any stimulation should come from him and him alone, and now Robin couldn't even imagine touching himself, or anyone else, in that way. He would never approach Slade for sex, though, or try to seduce him. It was not his place. It was his Master's decision, always.

"Of course, Master," he said humbly and looked up again, indicating that he was listening.

"As you know we are here to kill the Mayor. I will take the actual shot, but you will distract the security."

"Yes, Master, I know. We have already looked at the maps and-"

"Do you really think I would be talking about this if I didn't have any new information for you?" the man interrupted.

Robin blinked, feeling stupid.

"No, Master. I'm sorry."

"Very well. As I said, I've heard some news. He has hired some new body-guards. The Titans."

"The Titans? Here? In New York?" Robin gaped, feeling himself pale.

"Yes. Apparently they have heard that I have accepted a contract on the mayor and decided to intercept me. Which means one thing: they are here for _you_."

"But…. but how did they find out?" the teen asked, his eyes wide. He was deadly afraid that Slade thought that he had somehow contacted his old friends, something he hadn't even thought of doing for over two years.

"Through me."

"What…. _you,_ Master?" Robin felt his very foundations shake.

"It's your final test, Robin… do you think you can handle it?"

"Master, I… I don't know. It's been so long, but… I hope so."

"Honesty. Good. That was part of the test. You are doing well, Robin. I'll be there if you need help."

"Yes, thank you, Master," the teen nodded, still shaken.

Since his first confrontation with the Titans Slade had pitted him against them one more time before they left Jump City. It stopped being about his old friends a long time ago. Slade had taken focus off the original 'do as I say or I'll kill your friends' as soon as the teen had begun to accept his role. After that it became about_ Robin's_ punishments and_ Robin's_ awards. The ex-Titan hadn't even seen the controller after they left Jump. Slade didn't need it anymore. Not because the teen had been tamed quite so quickly, oh no, but because the man knew that if Robin kept focusing on the Titans, he would cling to them, and any reminder would only make him cling harder. So Robin had to be reprogrammed not to think about his friends but about himself. To become selfish in the most primal way; do whatever it took to cause himself as little harm and as much benefits as possible. The egocentric law of the jungle…

"Master, what if… what if I can't fight them off? Or kill them?" Robin asked after being quiet for a while, his shoulders slumping.

"As I said, I'll be there for you."

"But, Master, no! You have to focus on the kill!" Robin said. Slade had taught him to use terms like 'kill' or 'death' not 'hit' or 'obliterate' because the man didn't believe in sugarcoating. "What about the client?"

"There is no client, I made one up. I picked the Mayor of New York because he's a high profile target, and he's expendable, but if I need to abort the mission to help you it won't matter. I would like to take the shot, though, so do your best."

"I will, Master… thank you." Robin said softly.

"Well, with that out of the way, I can think of another way you can thank me…" the man smirked.

_I can do this…_ Robin was crunching out of sight on a roof, waiting for Slade's signal to come through his ear piece. _I'm not a part of them anymore… I can't be… it's gone too far… there's no going back. _He took a deep breath and put his hand on the steel 'S' covering his heart. This was what he was now.

"It's time, Robin. Move."

"Yes Master."

It was difficult facing the Titans, not when it came to fighting them, he was too well trained to hesitate, but meeting their eyes…

Robin wanted to say something, desperately. Begging for them to save him, to get him out of this nightmare. He had just lost control somewhere… this was his dark side, they all had one, he was sure; this wasn't the _real_ him… And still, when he heard the single shot ringing out, he couldn't help but smirk… and that was all they saw. Not Robin, not their old friend and leader… but the animal he had become.

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Another "you have to fill in the pieces"-drabble… frustrating? ;) –troll-face- Actually, drabbles like these could be a base for a chaptered story, of course, like a plot-synopsis to build from, but if I started go into details in THIS format it would grow out of hand… I actually feel like this was a pretty neat and wrapped up drabble and I like how it and the song it's based on works together… but this isn't about what I feel, but what YOU feel, so do review and tell me.. ;)


	21. 21 Bad Wardrobe Choice

A/N: Merry Christmas **Renee430**

I got a long list of prompts from Renee, and I ended up picking two of them, actually… ;)

Oh, Robin might come off as a little… _loose_ in this… but that's because he is!

* * *

**Bad Wardrobe Choice?**

Robin loved December because his favorite gay club had a 'come as you are' theme every Wednesday that month. How you interpreted that was up to you; you could show up in plain jeans and a tattered t-shirt, in an animal costume, in pajamas or dressed as Darth Vader… anything was okay, which meant Robin could drop by in uniform and no one would raise an eyebrow. He didn't only do that, though… he had worn some crazy stuff… like a leather skirt, once, but how girls could wear skirts on the dance floor without getting raped, the teen didn't know… maybe they wore underwear… well… maybe next time.

Tonight he had pulled something else together, however: his original Robin uniform! Sure it was more than a bit small and had to be altered a bit, but the nostalgia was worth it… and it sure drew attention…

He had skipped the mask, he usually did when he was in uniform, because that made the other visitors even more certain that he wasn't the 'real' Robin, although he introduced himself as such… fake names was not uncommon, no one really cared…

"Wooow… not bad…" someone shouted in his ear. Robin turned to see the grinning face of Red X. The other teen was also a regular at the club and it hadn't taken long for them to figure out each other's identities.

"Like yours too… all leather?" Robin asked and traced the thief's outfit with his eyes. It was more _patches_ of leather, to be truthful, held together by leather strings. He didn't wear a mask and his red hair hung loose around his shoulders. It seemed to get a little longer every time Robin saw him.

"Thanks… dance?" the thief asked, his green eyes glittering.

Robin nodded. Red X was not a bad dancer; in fact he usually got him quite hot and bothered…

"So what is that thing? Like a Robin-slash-Santa's-elf-gone-bad-outfit?" Red grinned.

"Hey! It's my original one!" Robin objected, turning around so Red could get a better look. "And don't knock my shoes!"

"I wasn't… really… I'm just… what, you actually _wore_ this?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?"

"You were fighting crime in Gotham wearing sparkly green panties?"

"They are not panties! They are shorts! But… without any legs… and no fly… and snug… and… oh, fuck, they _are_ panties, aren't they?"

"Yeah, baby… doesn't hide much either… you should wear them every day!"

"No wonder I turned out to be gay…" Robin snorted. "I'm going to have a serious talk with a certain pedo-Bat later…"

"I bet it was much easier for him to arrest the bad guys when they were busy fapping and watching you…" the thief grinned.

"Aw, yuck!" the teen laughed. "Although the Joker did grope my ass a few times…"

"Who wouldn't?" the other teen leered and did the same, and he was not the only one. The dance-floor was crowded, and Robin never had less than five hands on his body.

"What do they think this is? A petting-zoo?" he asked the redhead.

"Oh, you love it…" the teen grinned, and he was, of course, right.

They danced, they drank, although Robin stuck to virgin drinks, and they made out.

"Quit stealing and marry me?" Robin chuckled as they found themselves very much entangled in a booth in the back.

"But what would Slade say?" Red X smirked.

"He doesn't own me… we just did it once or twice…" Robin shrugged.

"You're such a slut, you know that, right?" the thief chuckled. "I heard you blew Mammoth at that H.I.V.E-party…"

"Might have… I was curious!" Robin claimed.

"And? I'm curious as well!"

"Oh, he's a mutant down there too… _really_ strange shape…ridges and bumps… I wouldn't mind getting a bit of that, let me tell you, but I could only get him drunk enough for a blow-job…"

"What, he's straight?"

"Yeah…" Robin muttered. "I convinced him that a mouth is a mouth, though…" he added smugly.

"Robin the seducer… what is it with you and bad boys?"

"Oh, I've not only had the baddies, sweetie…" the teen leered.

"Tell!"

"Nope. Lips sealed."

"Since _when_?"

"Aw, low…"the teen snickered.

"Want me to go lower?"

"Please…"

"Then give me a hint!" the other teen ordered as his hand slid into Robin's green 'panties'.

"You're so evil! Okay, I can tell you a few… won't surprise you… Speedy and Aqualad…"

"Yes, of course…" the thief said. "You must invite me next time they are in town…"

"Mm….. New Years… just the four of us?"

"It's a date…"

"Might just be us and Speedy, though… fish boy is a bit… well… clingy."

"How clingy?"

"Love-clingy."

"Ah… well, since I'm already engaged to you, that might not be a good thing, then…" the thief grinned and lowered his head.

"Oh… yeah… glad you… accepted the proposal…" Robin moaned.

"It's an open relationship, right?" the red-haired teen wanted to make sure.

"Totally…" Robin agreed and leaned his head against the booth's padded back rest to enjoy Red's talented tongue.

"You are so amazing at that… tutor me?" Robin asked afterwards.

"Sure… but I really want to fuck you, kid… let's go?"

"Where?"

"The roof?"

"Perfect…" Robin agreed and not much later he was pushed up against a vent, being kissed silly while his hard-on was getting its game together again.

"Turn around… I'm gonna fuck you right here…" Red whispered.

"Mm… Yeah… fuck me hard… I'm so ready…" the hero-by-day-slut-by-night moaned and did as his partner asked, pushing his ass out as Red pulled the 'panties' down.

The coolness of the lubed condom made the teen gasp as the thief pushed into him without any preparation. Robin liked it that way, though… a _lot_… Red fucked him with quick strokes as he held onto his hips, hissing dirty things to him which Robin only could agree to with moans. It wasn't long until the vent was splattered with white and Red was pulled along with Robin's orgasm, albeit very willingly.

"MMmm… that was goooood…" Robin murmured as he slowly straightened up, stretched and then turned to kiss the thief. "It was… wanna come home with me?"

"Sorry… have a thing in the morning…" Robin shrugged.

"When don't you?" the thief asked.

"Yeah, well... I've been caught sneaking out enough, so I better get home in time for once… I said before two AM…" Robin sighed and kissed his lover's jaw. "I'll make it up to you…?"

"With the help of Speedy, perhaps?" Red X wanted to know.

"Why not… but I warn you, he wants to top…"

"I can get him to bottom…" Red smirked.

"Want to make a bet there?" the hero chuckled.

"Sure, as long as you don't tell him anything…"

"Of course not… if you can make him bottom… without getting him drunk…"

"Aw!"

"See? Not as simple now is it? Well if you can… what do you want?"

"I want to see you get fucked by Slade… up close and personal. In fact, I want to join…"

"Slade is not much of a sharing person, but sure… I'll make it happen…" Robin grinned. "But if you lose… hmmm… oh, then I get to pick an outfit for you to wear on Valentines… and I'll get to top you in it…"

"It's a deal, kid… can't wait to hear if you scream his name when he deep dicks you…"

"Oh, I do… I do…" Robin snickered. "Bye… see you next week! Be good so I don't have to arrest you!"

"How about you just looking away, how come we never try that one?" the thief complained and then, with a two fingered salute, jumped over the roof-edge, landing on a fire-escape below.

Robin made a little purring sound he tended to make after a good fuck. He pulled up his panties, feeling how wet he was between his cheeks from the lube… He only fucked Slade bareback, because the man, with his healing abilities, couldn't carry anything, but he missed the feeling of seed dripping out of him right now… he almost wished…

"Well hello, Robin…"

The teen grinned widely as he turned around to face the masked man.

"They might be green panties, but I'm _so_ wearing this outfit again…"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: The prompts were "original outfit" and "petting zoo"… and since she said she liked Red X I let him get lucky a bit… although pretty much anyone could get lucky with this Robin, I guess… hmmm… I've read a few "Harry bottoms for everyone/everything" drabble collections… maybe those inspired me… Pray that I don't write one of my own! ;)


	22. 22 See No Evil, Hear No Evil

A/N: Merry Christmas **dlsky!**

This touches on a subject I've written about before, but when the blot-bunny bit me it infected me with an idea for one of the scenes in this and wouldn't let go, so…

Genre: soooomewhat angsty, I'd say… might cause a faint sense of claustrophobia of sorts…

* * *

**See No Evil, Hear No Evil**

It was one of the fiercest battles the Titans had been involved in, and it was against a new villain, calling himself "Sensus". His hands could shoot some sort of force and he had already hit Raven, rendering her mute. Robin had more to be concerned about, however: the building they had cornered the man in was crumbling.

"Listen! We need to get out of here!" he yelled, seeing a construction beam shake and then crack. "Everybody! Out! No-"

Suddenly his whole world became nothing but bright white pain. Robin screamed and stumbled backwards, only to fall. He hit his head hard against the beam and then the whiteness turned black.

He didn't know he was awake at first. He might as well be dreaming, he figured. He was laying down on something… his hands felt around a bit. Something soft. Mattress.

It was dark. He had never experienced darkness like this, not even in the bat-cave… and something else was wrong as well…

At that moment something grabbed his hand and Robin yelled out.

He couldn't hear his own voice.

"What… I… who are you? Answer me! I… I can't see… I…I can't…." the teen touched his ears, making sure nothing was in them. Mere earplugs wouldn't stop him from hearing himself talk, but maybe this was some other kind? But no. He touched his eyelids as well, making sure his eyes were open, because he just couldn't tell in the panicked state of mind he was in.

His wrist was grabbed again, not painfully, only firmly, but Robin tried to pull away, striking out with his other hand, trying to kick only to discover that his legs seemed to be covered by blankets. A hand pushed his chest down, again without hurting him.

Robin heart was racing, he was gasping for breath, and he couldn't hear any of it. The man next to him, no woman had hands like that, Robin figured, just kept him still, the thumb of the hand holding his stroking the bridge of his hand in a manner that must be meant as calming.

As that started to sink into Robin's mind, that he was not being attacked or hurt but that someone was trying to calm him down, he relaxed a little against the bed and, for the first time, made an effort to control his own panic. After a few minutes he gave the hand a tiny squeeze. It squeezed back. Robin took a deep breath. He couldn't hear or see, but someone was trying to communicate with him, someone was there. He wasn't alone.

"Okay… I… I'm calmer now…" he said. It was strange to talk without being able to hear himself. He could feel the vibrations in his throat and he could form the words in his mind, but he wasn't sure if the sounds came out right. "Can you… can you understand me?" he asked.

The hand holding his moved his whole hand up and down.

"Was that… was that a yes?" Robin asked. The move was repeated.

"Am I blond?" the teen asked next, his hand was moved from side-to-side instead.

"Good… am I in a hospital?"

-No-

"No? But… the Tower?"

-No-

Robin's heart started to race again. Why wasn't he? Wait, could he be in Gotham? He suddenly realized that he wasn't wearing his mask, he had been able to touch his eyelids… so what did that mean?

"Am I in Jump?"

-Yes-

"Do I know you?"

There was a small pause, like the man was hesitating, but then the answer came:

-No-

"Are you treating me?"

-Yes-

"I can't hear or see…"

It hadn't been a question, but the hand moved his in a short 'yes'-gesture and then patted the top of his hand again.

"Do you think it's permanent?"

-No-

This time the move was very firm, and Robin smiled and nodded.

"Okay… good… are you sure?"

-Yes-

"The Titans, are they here?"

-No-

"Is anyone else here? Anyone I know?"

-No- Pause –No-

"No to both?"

-Yes-

"I need to learn how to ask better questions, huh?" Robin mumbled.

A clear 'yes', this time, making the teen smirk a little. Robin then frowned.

"The last thing I remember… was that we were fighting… are the Titans alright?"

-Yes-

Robin didn't like the short hesitation again.

"Are you sure? I know Raven was hit as well, is she still mute? Did they all get out alright? Did the building collapse? How about Sensus? Where-" the hand holding his tightened in a firm grip. "Oh… too many questions?"

-Yes-

"Sorry…"

Patting.

Robin thought things through.

"Is any of the Titan's seriously hurt?"

-No-

"Good… Is Sensus still at large?"

-No-

"Even better… I'm gonna have a chat with him… when I can see him squirm."

-No-

"What do you mean, 'no'? He's under arrest, right?"

-No-

"But… you said… he's…" Robin backtracked a bit again. "Is… he's not dead, is he?"

-Yes-

"Oh… fuck… sorry, I mean… I didn't want him to die… Was it the building collapsing?"

-No-

"No? Was it… "

The hand tightened around his again, with a firm shake.

Robin blinked and then he understood.

"Too complicated to discuss like this?" he asked.

-Yes-

"Alright…" He was thinking about other things to ask when his hand was turned over and his caretaker carefully opened his palm up. The next moment Robin felt a finger tracing it.

"Damn, that tickles! What are you doing?"

the hand holding his firmed a moment, like in retribution, and Robin focused.

"Are you trying to tell me something? Oh, it's a 'Q'! Q…q… question?"

-Yes-

Robin thought he understood.

"_You _want to ask _me _something?"

-Yes-

"Okay?"

The hands left his and fingers pressed against the side of his neck for a moment, only to then move down his arms like the man was patting him down.

"Are you asking if I'm armed?" Robin snorted.

-No- the hand was back on his just long enough to shake it, and then it moved on, lifting one of his arms, bending it this way and that.

Robin stared up in puzzlement until the man tapped his knee.

"You're examining me! You want to know if I I'm in any pain?" the teen asked.

-Yes-

"God, I'm brilliant…." Robin smirked.

The hand moved his in a vague circular way, making the teen snort.

"Fine, well… the back of my head is a bit tender… a bump, nothing bad… other than that…" Robin moved around, feeling his own ribs, trying to find anything out of place. "No, I'm alright… nothing hurts.

His hand was moved in a 'yes' motion at the same time at it was patted, something Robin decided must mean 'good' or something like that.

His palm was turned up again, and the man drew a single line in it…

"I?" Robin asked.

-Yes-

The line was repeated and then Robin felt fingertips pressing down in a dotted line across his palm. This was repeated a few times, and then it cleared.

"Walking?"

-Yes-

"I walking? You want me to walk somewhere?"

-No-

"But… oh, _you_… you are walking… you are going?"

-Yes-

"Oh…" Robin wasn't sure he liked that. "Will I be alone?"

-Yes-

"How long?"

A line and a circle were drawn this time.

"Ten?"

-Yes-

"Ten… minutes?"

-Yes-

"Okay… I'll be fine," Robin nodded and felt a last pat on his hand. He leaned back against his pillow. He had been fine when focusing on communication, but his pulse soon rose again. He was alone, with a stranger, and it wasn't a hospital… his friends weren't here but they were okay… at least that's what the stranger had said… that they weren't badly hurt… but could he trust this man? This man who might know his real identity? But what could he do? He was completely helpless for now, until his senses hopefully returned… unless the man had lied about that too…

The imagination is a wonderful thing… until it turns against you. Scenarios was starting to run through the teen's mind from the idea that he was really dead, to that he was surrounded my enemies who were closing in on him, laughing, drawing their weapons...

A hand closed around his.

"AAh!" Robin yelled an almost managed to jump out of bed before he was grabbed and held down in the same way as before. "Is-is it you?" he stuttered,

-Yes-

"Crap, you… you scared me…"

-pat-pat-

"Yeah, yeah, I know you can't help it…." Robin growled, trying to calm down. He felt very embarrassed about overreacting.

-Yes-

"Yes what? Yes you know I know?"

-No-

"Huh… what, you _can_ help it?"

-Yes-

"Explain that one…" Robin muttered.

Something closed around his wrist, like a watch and then Robin felt a short vibration against his skin like a cell phone. The man did the sign for walk across his palm again, and then his fingers changed direction and the thing vibrated once more.

"Oh, that's clever… does it work like… like a doorbell? To tell me you're entering the room?"

-Yes-

"Well, am I clever NOW then?" Robin smirked.

-Yes- -pat-pat-

Robin chuckled but then his other hand was grabbed and his fingers place on top of the wristband.

"A button?"

-Yes-

"You'll hear it if I press it? Like in a hospital?"

-Yes-

"That's good… thank you," Robin nodded. "Umm… could you write your name? I don't know what to call you?" The man started to and it was pretty simple for Robin to follow.

"Wilson?"

-Yes-

"I'm Robin."

-Yes-

The teen bit his lip. He had talked freely about the Titans although his mask was off, but, on the other hand, he was still wearing his uniform, wasn't he? He felt his chest for the familiar textures, but no, it was just a cotton t-shirt.

"My… my clothes, why-?"

His hand was grabbed quickly.

-D-I-R-T-Y-T-O-R-N- C-H-A-N-G-E-D-S-H-I-R-T-

Robin used his free hand to touch his legs, and yes, he was still wearing his tights, or at least something that felt exactly like them.

"My belt, where's my belt?"

The man's hand left his and that scared the teen, but it was only gone a few seconds, and then something familiar was put in his lap. Robin felt the pockets, knowing everything by feel as he had trained himself to. Even the communicator was there. Not that he could use it… well, he couldn't hear whet the others said anyway, or see them, so…

"Do the Titans know I'm here?"

-Yes-

"Can you call them?"

His palm was used as a writing-pad again.

-N-O-V-I-S-I-T-O-R-S-Y-E-T-

"What? Why?"

-S-P-E-C-I-A-L-I-S-T-C-A-R-E-

"You're a specialist?"

-Yes-

Robin frowned. He didn't like this. Warning bells was ringing when it came to this person, but voicing his suspicions might get him in deeper trouble… he better just play along.

"Okay… sounds weird, but I guess it's too complicated to explain again, huh?"

-Yes-

"Thought so…" Robin muttered and then hid a yawn behind his hand. "I'm kinda tired… have a bit of a headache… is it alright if I sleep for a while?"

-Yes-

Robin felt his hand being lifted to his wrist band again.

"Okay, I'll push the button when I wake up," he promised.

-Yes- -pat-pat-

"Thanks," Robin forced a small smile onto his face. His hand was squeezed once and then it was let go. Robin turned slightly on his side and pulled up the blanked as he closed his eyes, letting his breathing even out. After what he thought must have been around fifteen minutes rolled over on his back again and sat up. He held out his hand as if he was searching for something.

"Are you here?" he asked in a normal speaking voice. "Wilson?"

No touch answered him, and Robin grinned a little. Just because he was blind and deaf didn't mean he wasn't a detective… and a damn good one at that. He'll try to find some things out on his own.

He carefully made sure that he wasn't attached to anything, like a drip or some sensors, but there was nothing. He sat up on the edge of the bed and felt around. The bed didn't seem to have a headboard, but the sheets and everything else felt normal. They weren't as crisp and somewhat rough like absolutely new sheets could be, he noted. He carefully lowered his feet, which were bare, to the ground. The floor was cold and he wasn't sure what it was made of, maybe absolutely smooth stone, like marble, but that would be rather weird in a bedroom, wouldn't it? Robin shook his head. He couldn't let his imagination run away with him again; he would focus on what he was _sure_ of, nothing else.

A moment later his little toe was sure it was broken, as it had slammed into something. Robin cursed under his breath and reached out for whatever it was, finding a very simple bed side table, and, on top of it, his belt, which the man had put away again. There was nothing else, and the teen decided to follow the wall for now. The texture of the wall was rough but there was nothing in his way for several steps until his other, outstretched hand, bumped into something that at first seemed like a wall, but which moved a little when pushed. After several minutes Robin deduced that it was a partition, like used to form office cubicles. Were there other patients here? He followed the partition and then found another one, and a bit later a corner. After a few more steps there was a gap.

Robin hesitated. The bed should be somewhere behind him now, not too far. On this side, at least, the room he was in wasn't very big. Should he continue to explore this room or venture out of it? He decided on the room first, and soon he had mapped it out. The only thing, apart from the bedside table, was another one just like it on the other side, and a chair, which Wilson might have been sitting on during some of their 'interaction'.

Robin found his way to the door opening again, noting that it was, in fact, just an opening and not a door. At least he wasn't locked up… well… not in the small room anyway. He called out the man's name again, not too loudly, though, but even after standing with his hand out for a while, nothing happened, so the man could not be very close.

He followed the outer side of the partition, deciding that if he found another 'room' next to his, he wouldn't go into it but back to his own. He didn't want to freak anyone else out. There was no other room, however, and he soon found himself back at the rough wall. He followed it for maybe twenty or thirty steps, an eternity it felt like, until he bumped into something else. This was definitely furniture of some kind, and Robin explored it carefully. His conclusions surprised him; it was a work-bench, not like in a kitchen with cabinets underneath, but not like an office desk either… it was chunkier, and the worktop seemed to be metal. Robin had something similar in his rooms at home, but what was a thing like this doing here? He very, very carefully felt over the surface. The first thing he found he identified pretty quickly; a screwdriver. He then found something with wires and withdrew his hands quickly, afraid of getting an electrical shock. This was getting stranger and stranger. He had expected to find medical equipment, perhaps, but not this…

There could still be a reasonable explanation for it all, though, Robin decided. If people with disabilities were taken care of here, this could be a hobby-area, maybe for recreation or training… he might find clay or something next, who knew?

That wasn't what he found though, because as his fingers trailed the edge of the worktop, they met with some cloth. Deciding that it probably not dangerous, Robin felt it. It was strange, thick and heavy, but it seemed to be an arm, he thought, and traced it until he found a neck with a high kind of collar, a little like a turtleneck. He then found the other arm and deduced that it was a big piece of clothing, but what was it? Some protective gear? That kind of made sense in a work-area… he felt it again. It reminded him of something but he wasn't sure what. Maybe some radiation protection suits or… a bullet proof vest… if there were things that needed that kind of protection out here, it might be safest to head back.

He had just decided as much and turned around when his hand brushed something metal, lying right next to the clothing or whatever it was. The first thing that came to Robin's mind as he touched it was a welding-mask, but he soon realized that that wasn't quite right. The image was still in his head as he felt over the oval surface, however, and that helped him interpret the gap he found as an eye. It was in the right place, after all, but… there was no second one… which meant he must be wrong. When his fingers slid down towards what would be the mouth he felt a slit vertical slit there… an another… and another… four of them… four slits, one eye…

No…

It couldn't be…?

He dropped the metal item back on the counter and hurried back towards his room as fast as he could. He would use his communicator, somehow, and call the Titans. It wasn't like he never had used it in the dark before. Even though it lit up, he was sure he could remember where the buttons where, and he could at least talk… let them know where he-

A hard grip suddenly caught his arm and he yelled out. This time he wanted to know something, however, so his free hand flew up and felt for his attackers face. Before it was caught, his fingertips had traced over an eye patch. He had never seen Slade's face, but as his mask lacked an eye it was only logical that the man also would… why else would he wear something that would half blind him?

"Slade!"

It slipped out of him. Maybe, if he'd played ignorant, he could have pretended to fallen for whatever new lie the man might come up with, but now it was a bit too late for that. The man might have both his hands but not his knees, and Robin gave it his all in the hope to hit anything. Preferably the groin. His knee smashed into something, alright, but it seemed to be the man's upper thigh and he didn't as much as loosen his grip even a little.

Robin was dragged back, kicking and screaming, and soon he found out that the bed had some hidden secrets after all; restraints. The padded leathers traps kept his wrists, ankles and midsection pinned to the bed, and the teen growled in frustration.

"You fucking piece of worthless _crap_!" he yelled at his so called benefactor. "Release me right now you bastard! I'm gonna rip that eye out of you head and fucking stomp on it and then I-"

The slap was perhaps not a surprise, but having his head fly to the side, feeling the sting but not hearing a thing was weirder than anything Robin had experienced so far, and that actually stunned him more than the stinging pain. He had no idea that sound was such a big part of the… well… _experience_, you might say.

The man was holding Robin's palm open and writing in it again.

-C-A-L-M-

"Yeah, right, I'd like to see you try it!" Robin growled. "The Titans don't know I'm here, do they?"

-No-

"Thought so… what _else _have you lied about, you piece of shit?"

It killed Robin to stay still and let the man use his hand, just so he could get some answers. The man didn't reply anything to the last thing, however, probably because it wasn't something that could be answered easily.

"Are… are they alive?"

-Yes-

"Will… what the hell am I doing, you can just be lying to me again!" Robin snorted and tried to pull his hand away. That was too difficult, however.

-No-

"Yeah… right…" the teen muttered. "Feel so much better now…"

-pat-pat-

"Don't fucking pat my hand!" Robin snarled. A second later he felt a pat again. On his head. "Was that supposed to be funny?" he asked.

-Yes-

"Fuck off."

-No-

You can't keep me here! Bring me back to the Titans! I need help!"

-F-I-ND-E-R-S-K-E-E-P-E-R-S-

"No!" Robin shook his head. "I don't want to stay here! What the hell use am I to you anyway, huh? Wait… what about me getting better… was… was that a lie too?"

-No-

"So I will get better?"

-Yes-

"You're sure?"

-Yes-

"Good… you better prepare to be in some serious pain, Slade… and sew yourself another eye patch, cause- STOP THAT!" Again his head had been patted. He tried to glare, but didn't know how efficient that was, considering that he could be looking at the wall. Instead he closed his eyes and let himself slump into his pillows.

"I want to be with my friends…" he murmured.

-No-

Robin turned his head away. He could feel his eyes watering and he had no way of wiping them with his hands bound.

"Slade… what are you going to do with me?"

-H-E-A-L-Y-O-U-

"Yeah, well, you just have to kill me afterwards, because I'll never work for you!" Robin hissed.

-P-E-R-H-A-P-S-

"No, you can take_ that_ one to the bank…" Robin snorted. "Besides, right now I'm pretty useless to you anyway, right?"

Slade didn't answer in the usual way. Instead he did something worse. The hand landed softly on Robin's chest and slipped down over his abs only to end up cupped over the teen's groin, massaging it gently.

Robin went crazy. He kept screaming and thrashing long after Slade's touches had left him. He could feel his throat hurting from the screams and curses, but he kept on until he started crying. As the man wasn't touching him anymore Robin didn't know if he was still in the room… watching… laughing. The panic left Robin gasping for breath and soon he had no energy left for anything that to try and breathe. His nose was clogged up, his face wet and he didn't think he had ever been so scared in his life… and still… he knew it had only begun.

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Yes I'm ending it there! Don't look at me like that… The truth is, I had more scenes in mind, but it was just one scene after the other with no ending or drive, and the fact is that the story is actually angst-ier if left like this…

I don't like this Slade… I mean, I… ah, god, I'm a not-so-much-closet-softie, and although I sometimes enjoy writing Slade as a pure evil bastard, I usually let Robin have a BIT more going for him than this… ;) I still let him cross the line, however, because I rather suspected you MIGHT be thinking that this was a Hurt/Comfort story, and HA! Tricked you! … hopefully… unless you read the title and took it literally… which you should have… ;)

IF you are evil enough to vote for a sequel for this, even though you _know _I have no idea where to take it, PLEASE include an ending... or I will SOOOO not give you any cookies next year! ;) Lots of cookies if you vote on something else! ;) What? I just think it SHOULD end here!


	23. 23 Green Eyed Monster

A/N: Merry Christmas **CatrionaMalfoy!**

This idea was funny, but I can't share it because it would ruin the story… ;) No warnings, however, so read on safely!

* * *

**Green Eyed Monster **

It was a really strange party going on at Wayne Manor. Well, if you were just one of the rich guests you might not even notice anything, but if you had a bit more insight, perhaps you would find it odd to see two very high-ranking criminals standing around, wearing tuxedoes and obviously not crashing the party. If you were not in 'the know' you might just recognize them as Lex Luthor, the multi-billionaire industrialist and philanthropist and Slade Wilson, American hero… but then again, you obviously knew nothing but what the papers told you… Robin, on the other hand, knew that at least _one _of them was an evil bastard…

Apart from these two guests the party was pretty much like any other held at the manor. It was a charity-thing, as they usually were, and there were lots and lots of famous faces around, not just these two… politicians, business people, movie-stars… and Bruce Wayne, of course, sailing through the crowd like he belonged there… which, of course, he did.

Robin, though, or Richard Grayson as he was out of uniform, thought the tuxedo was a bit constricting… he didn't mind being here, however, as he had been involved in the case which was the reason for this gathering.

It had all began when the royal family of the small African country Nosutshland had been kidnapped on a boat trip by pirates, who demanded millions of dollars as ransom. The small country, although rather financially stable, had no way to come up with such an amount of money and pleaded to the world for help.

Bruce Wayne, who actually knew the family personally, vowed to help, and, very surprisingly to Bruce, so did Lex Luthor. On the surface, the two wealthiest industrialist worked together, although they both knew that Luthor's reasons were, perhaps, not all pure. Which they weren't… Robin had been the one to discover that one of the man's spies had reported finds of diamonds, and Luthor wanted to have first dibs on the land.

Still, it was a rather benign reason, so they had let him help, and soon the money was raised. But then the pirates demanded more. It was becoming clear that the royal family was in danger and the American government, acting on their own because of some sort of twisted American pride, actually did something right; they sent Slade. Slade not only got the family back without a scratch, he also got the money back… which was donated to charities within the country, because not even Lex Luthor could just take his share and put it back in his pocket…

And so, as all was well, the family had been warned about Luthor's plans and decided to make sure the man wouldn't make as much money as he might have hoped, and the party had been planned so everyone could bask in the knowledge that they were all good people really, even though they pretended not to see the homeless on their way to work.

Robin and Bruce had snorted, but played the game. It was important, after all… but it didn't mean that the teen was enjoying himself very much. Yet.

Robin politely finished a conversation, excused himself and walked over to the refreshment-table.

"May I?" a voice asked and the teen looked up at a man offering to serve him some kind of cold, fruit-filled beverage.

"Mr. Luthor… of course, thank you," Robin said, trying to hide his surprise and smile as he took the glass. "I didn't see you arrive."

"I'm hurt, I always like to think I cause quite a stir…" the man smirked. "If you excuse me for being so bold, Mr. Grayson, you have really grown up since I saw you last… how old are you now?"

"Eighteen," the teen answered, taking a sip. "So… thank you for helping with the whole kidnapping-crisis, Mr. Luthor," he added. He wondered how soon this conversation would turn too strange for words, considering that the man knew who he was. He also, of course, know who Bruce was, but Robin had heard a rumor saying that when Lex found out, his company and Bruce's were already investing in many of the same markets, which meant that if Bruce died, the stock of Wayne Enterprises would plummet and so would everything the company had invested in… in short, killing Batman was bad for business. He didn't know if it was true, but the man seemed intent on being pleasant.

"Call me Lex… may I call you Richard?"

"Of course… so, quite a crowd here, huh?"

"Yes, indeed… You are usually too busy with your… _education_, to attend these things, are you not?"

"Yeah, school can be tough…" Robin grinned.

"Oh, I have a feeling you prefer it," the bald man chuckled.

"True," Robin shrugged and laughed a bit himself.

"Well, you should join the higher ranks of society more often… you look very good in a tux…" the man said and strolled off.

Robin was left blushing a little but soon found himself pulled into another conversation. As he moved on from that, because as part of the host-family it was important to speak to as many guests as possible, a shadow fell over him.

"Having a good time, Dick?"

"Mr. Wilson…" Robin said dryly. "I wasn't aware that we were on first names basis."

"What, outside of work?" the man smirked.

"Exactly."

"Ah, there you are, Richard," another voice cut in.

"Oh, hi again Lex!" Robin smiled.

"I was talking to a guest over there and heard from Bruce that you were a fan… dame Cecilia Lind?"

"_She_'s here?" Robin exclaimed.

"Yes, and I'd be delighted to introduce you," the businessman smiled.

"Lind?" Slade asked.

"Oh, Mr. Wilson, forgive me if I was intruding on your conversation, but I knew Richard here would be interested… I'd invite you too of course, but I suspect you have no interest in opera?"

"Wilson?" Robin snickered. "Please…"

"Oh, don't judge the dog by its hairs, Richard," Lex told him. "Just because it_ looks_ like a homeless mongrel it might end up surprising you and _not_ piss on the carpet… although I would still look out for fleas… If you would excuse us, Wilson?" The man put a hand carefully around a chuckling Robin's back and led him away. "Oh, and Dame Cecilia has promised to sing for a selected few tomorrow night… perhaps you would like to join me?"

"Oh, that would be amazing!" Robin beamed. "I haven't heard her since my latest trip to Rome…"

"Amazing city… my new favorite is Budapest, though; it also has a rich history and is not so well known by fellow Americans…"

"Maybe I'll go there next, then…" Robin nodded.

They had just left the Dame's company, which had been very pleasant, when Lex excused himself to go fetch them a plate of snacks.

"So… was the opera-chick funny?"

"Mr. Wilson…?" Robin turned to look at the man, his eyes raised in surprise. "Would you like me to introduce you to some people? You don't seem to have anyone to talk to…?"

"Wilson again?" Lex said from behind them. "You are _aware_ that I was only joking about the mongrel thing, weren't you? It wasn't an invitation to follow Richard around like a puppy."

"Oh, Lex, that was mean…" Robin said and more touched than slapped the man's arm. "Wilson, of course you are welcome to join us… you did a heroic thing, after all…" the teen continued.

"Yes, well done on not getting anyone killed… apart from some kidnappers, I heard, but… ah, well… what can you do?" the business-man smirked. "Oh, that's right, Richard, you have to try this one, it's simply divine…" the man was holding up a toothpick with a small, square bite sized treat on it. Robin smiled and opened his mouth, taking the snack directly from the tooth pick. He closed his eyes as he chewed.

"Mmm… oh, yes… sooo good…" he mumbled.

"Wilson, why don't you go check if they have… steak or something…" Luthor said dismissingly. "Something more suitable for… your taste."

"You know there are many ways to kill a man with a toothpick, don't you?" the mercenary growled.

"Ah!" Luthor said and burst out in such a horribly fake laughter that even an unnaturally busty blonde close by looked impressed. "Classic Slade, isn't it? Well, a certain type of man is prone to violence even in polite society, it appears…" The sound of a soft bell rung through the air. "Seems dinner is served… we really have to talk more later, Mr. Wilson, I didn't know you had such a sense of humor. Richard, may I escort you into the dining room?"

"Of course, Lex," Robin smiled and felt the man's hand at the small of his back, yet again, as he let himself be steered trough the large doors which had just opened.

The dinner was pretty informal with small tables set up throughout the room. Robin and Lex had been placed at the same table, although not with each other. The ladies turned out to be Madame Cecilia and a colleague of hers, however, and the conversation flowed, with many laughs and on three different languages. Robin found Luthor to be surprisingly charming and funny. He had a rather sharp tongue and wasn't afraid to use it, but that was very common in these circles.

They had barely left the dining room before Slade was at Robin's shoulder again.

"Rob- Mr. Grayson, may I have a word?" the man said quietly. Robin was about to agree when his arm was caught.

"Thank you, Richard. I think that was the loveliest dinner I've had in a very long time…" Luthor told him, completely ignoring Slade. "I wish I had known half the things you do at your age. But, I meant to ask you… I hear there will be dancing in the ballroom in a few minutes… would you care to dance with me?"

"R-really….? Dance?" Robin blushed rather noticeably this time.

"Oh, I took a peek in there and there are other same-sex couples if that's what you are worried about," the bald man smiled.

"No… I mean… I'm not worried for _me_, but… there's press here… aren't _you_ worried? About your image?"

"About being seen dancing with the most beautiful person here? No, I think not. Only the weak of heart lets other people and their judgment stand between them and… what they really want."

"Oh, Lex, that's-" Robin started.

"Very true," Slade finished and grabbed the teen's other arm. "Excuse us, Luthor. Go steal some old woman's purse."

Robin didn't want to cause a scene so he let himself be manhandled out on the terrace, which was deserted due to the cold winter air.

"Slade, what-!" he hissed as soon as it was safe.

"So it's 'Slade' now, is it? I don't know what Luthor thought he was doing, but you, young man, are _mine_," the mercenary pushed Robin against a column and kissed him before he could say another word.

The teen pushed against the man's chest for a little while, but then submitted to the kiss suspiciously quickly, smiling as he parted his lips. Slade made sure to take advantage of the submission for quite a while before ending the kiss.

"You are smiling and you are not yelling or trying to punch me out… why do I have a feeling I was set up?" the man asked darkly.

"Because you were…" Robin grinned. "I promised Lex to tell him how I hacked his mainframe if he'd flirt with me tonight… Him being obnoxious to you, well… that was just icing on the cake…"

"And why, pray tell, did you blackmail him?" Slade wanted to know.

"Because you're such a dumbass! You flirt with me one moment and act like nothing the next… I had no idea if you wanted to date me or just be frienemies. Now I know."

"Yes. Come, let's leave."

"We can't just leave, it's a party!" Robin objected.

"You're right… let's inform the host…" Slade nodded and, taking the teen by the arm, he strode back into the bustle of people.

"Slade, are you sure you want to-" Robin began, but there was no time for warnings.

"Bruce? A moment, please?" Slade said, calling the man away from the group he was speaking to.

"Yes?" Bruce said a bit suspiciously, raising an eyebrow when he saw Robin at the mercenary's side, his cheeks pink.

"I would just like to inform you that I'm taking Richard away from here for the night, and my intentions are in no way honorable. In fact I intend to be as dishonorable as he will let me."

The Dark Knights eyes narrowed a little as he pinned the other man with a calculating look.

"So he finally did it."

"Did what?" Slade growled, tensing up for a fight.

"Bagged you. He's been after you for years. Have a good night."

"Bruce!" Robin exclaimed. He had had no idea the man had suspected anything.

"No, no, Richard…" his mentor smirked. "You made your bed so now you have to sleep in it… or whatever you plan to do. Have fun. Put a sock on the door if you stay here."

"We will," Slade leered. "Though I don't understand why you are not having an aneurysm, right now…"

"Well, let's just say that I saw an alternative to you tonight… and I didn't like it," Bruce muttered. "I can't _stand _Lex Luthor."

"I'm glad to be the lesser evil… for once," Slade chuckled. "Oh, and can you tell Luthor that I have been chosen as a consultant to decide who gets the diamond prospecting rights… tell him every _dog_ has his day…"

"I will," the other man nodded with a grin.

"Well, are you two going to talk for much longer, because I can find something else to d- oops! Guess we're going!" Robin said as he was being yanked away by Slade's arm. "Night Bruce! Lovely party!"

The millionaire only raised his glass with a smile and turned back to his guests. He had a feeling he wouldn't see Robin for a few days…

_The End_

* * *

A/N: I can't write Lex Luthor in any other way than evil-ish businessman… I just don't know him well enough, so I'm sticking with that side of his… my apologies to the more canon-knowledgeable of you… The name "Cecilia Lind" comes partly from a very famous Swedish opera-singer Jenny Lind, also called the "Swedish Nightingale" (died 1887) and partly from a half-raunchy Swedish song where the main characters name was, in fact, Cecilia Lind… It's not important, it was just me amusing myself… which was also the reason for the name of the African country. I am sorry. ;)

Oh, and I know people like to see more violent reactions from Bruce, but I LOVED this one… I WILL write him going absolutely berserk another time, I promise…


	24. 24 To Go On

**IMPORTANT MESSAGE AT THE BOTTOM REGARDING VOTING!**

A/N:Merry Christmas** Kawaii-kuro!**

-Scrapes foot- I would like to APOLOGIZE profoundly for taking HUGE liberties with the canoness in this. Especially when it comes to dead people and geography. Now, I never liked geography in school, in fact I hated it, and this is really the only way to get back at it… except for stomping my feet really hard when I walk… If your hate geography too, and doesn't care where people might really have lived and died… you will have no problems with this…

Genre: This is Christmas Eve, people, so even though it's in the dark-category, it will leave you with an appropriate feeling, I'm sure… ;)

* * *

**To Go On**

It was Christmas Eve and Robin pushed the gates to the Gotham Cemetery open. It was early in the evening but already dark, and candles were flickering here and there on the graves around him as he walked the well known path.

He always came to see his parents on Christmas.

He passed a mother with her young boy standing by a gravestone where a wreath, decorated for the season, rested.

"Mum, can I ask grandpa something?" the boy wanted to know.

"Of course you can, sweetie…" the woman answered.

Robin hurried his steps a little, he didn't want to intrude on them, but he couldn't help but overhear the boy's next words.

"Grandpa? Can you ask Santa to bring me a Batman cape?"

The dark-haired teen felt himself smile a little as he moved on. The graveyard was more or less abandoned now, as most were home having dinner with their families. That's why Robin liked coming at this time; to be alone. The graves here all varied a lot, from small markers on the ground to huge tombstones, some, Robin hated to admit, in rather poor taste. Feeling a bit guilty about judging the preference of mourning family members, he walked on until he came to a stone with two names on it.

"Hi mum, hi dad…" he began, leaving the wreath he had carried with him against the stone. "Looks like your crazy son made it through another year, huh? You don't need to move over yet!" he grinned. His eyes were a little wet, but for a few years now he hadn't cried when he came here… he still missed them, every day, but now, instead of being reminded of the pain of losing them, he was more reminded of them as parents… and he never felt closer to them than when he was here. "Sooo… well, I'm okay…" he continued. "I'm not gonna tell you to ask Santa for anything by the way, although I just heard you could… why didn't you ever tell me that? I could have gotten that fire truck I wanted… ah, well… nah, I don't need anything. Well… a boyfriend would be nice…" Robin actually didn't think it weird that his parents were the first people he had come out to, although they had been dead for six years at that time. That was a few years ago now, though. "On the other hand, a boyfriend Santa brings will probably be the blow-up kind and… nah… think I'll pass…" The teen pulled his coat closer around him and looked around. No one in sight. Good, because if the paparazzi saw someone at these graves, he knew he would be chased. Fucking vultures. "I think I better go… you don't want me to catch a cold, right? I… miss you… Love you both…"

Robin turned and started walking again. He would take the long route and exit the grave-yard on the other side, where he knew Alfred would be waiting for him. He always did it like this, just to have that extra time to think… and blow his nose if he had been crying. Alfred wouldn't dream of saying anything, of course, but Robin was still a guy and guys didn't cry… which was bullshit, but anyway…

It had been snowing during the day and it was just starting up again. Small, glittering white flakes, falling slowly from the night sky, making the surroundings beautiful, despite what this area was. Robin was mostly looking at the graves, names and dates… some with candles and flowers, some bare… alone. He glanced up and saw a shadow further along the path. He stopped. Something about that shadow sent a tingle up his spine and made the hair on his neck stand on edge.

"Yeah… start scaring yourself in the middle of a cemetery…" Robin snorted under his breath and shook his head. When he looked up again the shadow was gone. Which was perfectly natural. The man had probably just left. There were lots of paths, after all, and if you were the disrespectful kind you could simply walk over the graves.

Robin snorted at himself again, and continued walking. When he got to the spot where he had seen the man he looked down, and sure enough; there were footprints. Ghost didn't leave those, he thought. Three gravestones had been cleared of snow, each having a single red rose resting on top of them. Robin saw the card attached to one of them. 'From dad'. Glancing at the dates he sensed a family tragedy. The woman in the middle, he thought, was the mother. She had died three years ago. Her sons, though, had died before her, one at the age of seventeen and the other at twenty one. Different years… The woman's stone said 'beloved mother', though… not 'wife'… and she had a different last name from her sons. Kane instead of Wilson. The teen swallowed, suddenly feeling like he was intruding and took a step back.

Something cold pressed into the back of his neck.

"You have ten seconds to tell me who you are and why you are following me."

The words didn't surprise Robin as much as the voice.

"Slade?"

He was roughly turned around by his shoulder, but didn't fight it. His knitted hat and scarf which had protected his head from the cold winds were pulled apart so the man could see his face in the light from a lamp post.

"Robin?"

"Got it in one… although, sorry, I was supposed to tell _you_ that, right? 'I'm Robin and I wasn't stalking you, you paranoid mercenary, I was visiting my parent's graves'. There. Better? It was outside the time-limit, though, so maybe you should shoot me?"

"Of course I won't shoot you," the man snorted, the gun disappearing inside his coat again.

"Good… Was rather looking forwards to Christmas…" Robin muttered. The relations between Slade and the Titans had been strained but conflict free for a little over a year after the man had worked on their side on a government mission. Of course, the lack of coflict might have to do with Slade staying away most of the time. It might also have something to do with the fact that it turned out that Batman knew him, even as Bruce, and that they had saved each other's lives once. Mostly by accident, but still.

"I apologize," the man said and turned to leave, the same way Robin was going.

"I… I'm sorry too… I didn't mean to pry, but I really didn't know it was you," the teen hurriedly explained as he extended his steps to keep up with the man.

"How could you? I expect you have never seen my face," Slade shrugged.

"Yeah, well…. actually I have. In photos… finally found your file- oh! Wilson! Like on the…" the word 'dad' flashed across Robin's mind. "Oh… god… I'm… I'm sorry for your loss."

"You have your own to worry about, I'm sure," the man said in a bit of a clipped, but not unfriendly, voice, and he slowed his steps a little. "It's been years…"

"It never goes away, though…" Robin said solemnly, and pulled his scarf back up.

"No it doesn't. Still… one has to go on."

"Yeah."

They walked in silence for a while until Robin saw the wall with the exit gate looming in the distance.

"So, you… have a place here in Gotham?" the teen asked.

"Hotel. I'm flying out tomorrow."

"Um… yeah… this will sound dumb, but it's Christmas…"

"I don't like the sound of this…." the man growled.

"No, but… come on! Alfred is waiting for me at the gate… we'll swing by your hotel, you check out… and you spend Christmas at the manor."

"No."

"Why not? It's Christmas!"

"It just another day, Robin."

"Well then… why not crash at the ultimate bachelor pad, then, if it's just another day? You know it would rile Bruce up, and you can drink his expensive brandy," the teen smirked.

"Suddenly it sounds a bit better…" the man snorted.

"I knew I got you with the brandy…" Robin grinned.

"Actually, you got me with Bruce."

"Don't say that, you'll make me jealous. You're_ my _villain, you know. Bruce can invite the Joker or something."

"I hope that was a joke."

"The 'you're mine'-thing?"

"The Joker-thing."

"Oh, it was," Robin nodded.

"Are you sure poor Alfred wouldn't mind? I actually like that man," Slade wanted to know.

"He always cooks way too much and sulks when there are leftovers, so he'll be delighted," Robin promised.

"And there's room?"

"You're kidding? Four people in a mansion? You can have your pick of beds," Robin chuckled.

"Is that right?" the man asked, his voice suddenly turning into a bit of a purr. "I can pick _any_ bed and you'll let me sleep in it?"

Robin blushed but met the man's eye bravely.

"Yup… that's exactly what I'm saying, Slade…"

"Then… I think it will be a merry Christmas after all…" the man leered.

Robin smirked back and reminded himself that he really needed to revisit the churchyard again before he left for Jump… to thank his parents for the present…

_The End_

* * *

A/N: Awwww… sweet ending, but the greif-thing put this in the "dark" category… The idea was for Slade to visit his loved one's graves and I liked it… but remember the 'disclaimer' at the top about when people died and where they are buried… dead bodies were moved for the sake of this story. Deal. ;)

* * *

**VOTING TIME!**

As tomorrow's drabble is more of a philosophical thing without any real plot, the voting for the **sequel** starts NOW! I will count them some time tomorrow evening or early Monday. You vote by leaving the name of the drabble (must be name or number, so I won't misunderstand) in a review to THIS chapter (must be this, because it will make it easier for me to count). I will allow anonymous reviews, but don't be a rotten ducky and vote several times, okay?

ALL drabbles are up for votes, and if you want one to continue please give me a hint in what direction you'd like it to go/what you want to happen. You can do this in the review or in a PM or on facebook or whatever… that doesn't guarantee that the story will turn out that way, but 1: it MIGHT get the plot bunnies biting and 2;even if the story you vote for doesn't win, if your idea really hits the spot it might still get written! So win-win!

Please take some time to consider what you want in a sequel… just because you really loved one of the drabbles, maybe it's just not SUITED for a sequel… there's always the danger that it will just be a repetition, of sorts, and maybe take the edge off the original story, so think it over and then you also should have some ideas to give to me! ;)


	25. 25 He Is One Thing To Me

A/N: Merry Christmas **hellfirefairy **(on dA)

And Merry Christmas to all of you!

This is a prompt-based drabble, and what the prompt is, you'll find out in the bottom A/N. This one is not up for a sequel vote, because, as you will see, it's not a story per se…It's somewhat canon-ish in parts, mostly 'what if'.

Well I'll leave you to it! Oh, and it's Christmas Day so it's gonna be fluffy as all heck, okay? ;)

* * *

**He Is One Thing to Me **

Oh, I've heard every argument in the book... 'he's too old for you', 'he's a criminal', 'he's…' Well, alright, so those are the arguments people _usually_ get hung up on… People like Batman or my friends, but, surprisingly, _him_ as well. Because there are times he looks at me like I'm from another planet… it's usually when I make him listen to some new band, or take him to places without classical music and real linen on the tables…which is strange because he's far from a rich snob… well…. far from a snob, anyway… maybe it's the age-thing, because "going out" to him usually includes at least a nice restaurant… Mostly, though, that look comes from others.

The criminal thing he doesn't mention too much. He knows what he's done. He's _proud_ of some of it… He knows we will never see eye to eye there, but I think I surprised him when I said I could live with that… because I can. His methods are not always… shall we say… _neat_, but neither are ours. We Titans fight with everything we have to save the city and, now and again, the whole planet. We probably wreck more building than Slade… but we try not to wreck lives…

Ah, no matter, it's not our differences I wanted to tell you about, but what makes us _click_… We both love to push ourselves. We love fighting, we love knowledge and we love getting better all the time. We won't settle. And we don't mind a little bit of pain either, if that what it takes. We challenge ourselves and each other and that goes beyond age and personal history, it makes those things not matter so much… Besides, I want as much time with him as I can, and he's more or less immortal, so… yeah… I'm not going to sit back and wait until I reach some kind of approved age limit, because, guess what? Our age difference will still be the same!

Oh, god, I'm sounding like one of those runaway kids on talk shows, right? But come on! I won't end up pregnant, will I? And it's not like I have any normal life anyway, not since my parents died and… nah, the circus wasn't exactly normal either, was it? I just don't DO normal… I think everyone else should do the smart thing and stay in school and don't run away from home… everyone but me. I'm such a hypocrite… but hey, I don't see those kids saving lives on a regular basis… I have a hell of a lot more responsibility than keeping my freaking room clean, thank you very much! If everything I had to complain about were curfews, pocket money and why I can't get those cool pair of jeans I want, then I'd be happy, really… I have to explain to parents sometimes that their kid died. Suck on that. Because yeah, we're heroes, but that doesn't mean we can save everybody. It's not a freaking kiddy-show, this life. It's not just freedom and gadgets and catchphrases… it's pain and blood and death too… and then there's Slade.

Slade. In his arms I can seek shelter from everything. I can cry there, I can be small and helpless… or I can laugh and feel warm and loved and strong. He's both things, a safe harbor and… well, I'd like to say refueling station, but I just know I'd get that look from him if he ever found that out… but screw that.

He might be older, but that means he has seen things, he knows things I can't possibly dream of knowing. Things that can't be learned in a book. He has experience and maturity, and _god _I need the maturity… My team, most of them cling to need to goof off, that their way of dealing, I guess, but as their leader I can't really join them full out. I need someone to talk strategy with without the word 'zombie' coming up even once.

At the same time I don't want to change my team, of course. I love them. It's not their job to change because of my needs; I have to take those somewhere else. In a responsible way. Which, some may say, would not include fucking a man old enough to be my grandfather. Screw them. What do they know? Besides, if you are immortal, how important are years?

Slade claims they still matter to him, to an extent… that he couldn't understand why he was attracted to me at first, apart from my body… and I still think that I could have gotten him in the sack quicker if I had boobs… what can I say, the man is a womanizer! Well, not as long as we've been together, of course, I would have had his balls for it, but… ah, you know. He flirts a bit. Not to get to me or to show off, it's just in his nature… he's not even aware of it and he's not interested at all… I can tell that because it doesn't matter what the women look like. If it had all been skinny young things with boobs the size of watermelons, then I'd be suspicious… but he even goes all charming around old ladies! And sure enough, he gets an extra thick slice of pie at the coffee shop too… stupid coffee-shop slut… oh, sorry… got sidetracked there.

I have to admit that I like to watch him flirt, though, because then I don't feel so silly for falling for him. The way his voice lowers, just enough… the almost boyish, teasing grin… the look in that eye of his, melting every heart in sight… -sigh- yeah… I've got it bad… He does it to me too, sure, but I'm a guy… he's even told me that, like I didn't already know. And Slade doesn't flirt with guys… not really. I don't think he feels it's alright… I swear, sometimes I want to put on a skirt just to see what would happen…

He makes love to me, though. He doesn't just _fuck_ me, oh, no… well, unless we're in a hurry… sometimes that's hot too… No, there's foreplay and lovemaking and cuddling and kissing… it's absolutely great.

What can I say? He's perfect… he's exactly what I need and I know he's always there for me as much as I'm there for him. Because I hold him too. He doesn't cry often, but sometimes bouts of nightmares hit him pretty hard… and then I'm his safe harbor…

…because he's my man.

* * *

I didn't want to love him. No… that's wrong. Contrary to popular belief I don't have a problem with the concept of love. I have fallen in and out of love countless times in my life, and I wouldn't mind loving the young man as a friend, or a nephew or even a son… but I didn't want to be _attracted_ to him. But I had to admit that I was, in the end. By then the little minx had figured out that he wanted me too, and nothing, literally, could stop us from being together.

And I'm not sorry. I'm not. I didn't even feel guilty the first morning after. Why should I? I made a decision, after all. I could have gotten the hell out of the city, and I almost did, but I was just so tired… tired of running…

People think I'm this coldhearted mercenary, and yes, that's partly true, but that does not mean I can't love. I've been a loner for a long time, that's true as well, but that was not out of choice, but because of my job. When I became what I am today, I had a wife and a kid on the way. Soon I had a family with two sons, and if I hadn't made some rather unorthodox decisions about my career, I'd still be a family man. With a large circle of friends, probably… I never had any problem making friends… but then it happened. Joseph was hurt, Addie of course was… shall we say… a bit upset? Yes, let's, because there's not a word for what she was, and I don't blame her. I wouldn't have blamed her even if she had managed to kill me that day…

But life moved on. I learned that with my job, keeping friends and family was not a wise choice, so I became this lone wolf you all had me pegged for…and why didn't I just quit? Get a regular job? Because… I couldn't. When the army kicked me out I became a hunter for a while, but that wasn't enough. I had been in the army since I was _sixteen_, I lived and breathed adrenaline… It's physically impossible for me to just… settle down behind a desk, I can't do it. Maybe I have some sort of syndrome…

But then along came Robin. Robin, who understood that aspect better than anyone. I think even Batman will settle down with a blanket over his knees one day, but Robin? Not a chance. He won't even slow down, and, if things goes the way I want them to, I'll be right there beside him.

We are discoverers, him and I… we might not discover continents, but we discover each other. And yes, I know your mind was instantly thinking about something naughty and you are right. Sexually as well. What can I say? He's attractive. Really attractive. He can make me start to drool like a mindless dog with just a look, or, even better, the way he shifts his hips sometimes when he's standing. That often happens when we have an argument about something for some reason…. _god damn it,_ is the little brat aware of what he's doing to me? I think I have to get to the bottom of that… hmm… yes…

I apologize. Robin's bottom, however appealing it might be, is not what I wanted to talk about… that's only a part of him, after all. His mind, for example, his mind is amazing. He has an observational skill and a way to analyze what he sees that leaves me behind sometimes. Not that I'd let him know that if I can avoid it. I guess Batman helped fine-tune it, but he must have started with some damn good raw material…

We complement each other. I won't say 'complete', because I don't believe in that drivel. We are two complete individuals on our own, after all. I try to give whatever he needs from me, and he makes it so easy. It feels so good to wake up with him in my arms, smell his hair… wait for him to make that adorable little sound he makes just before he wakes up… I don't want anyone to ever take that away from me.

Oh, we fight, as I mentioned before. We have a pretty normal relationship as far as it _can _be normal. He has a key to my flat, I can pretty much get into the Tower whenever I want, key or not. Drives Cyborg crazy. We don't exactly live together, because with our jobs… and no, I don't have a desk job. Some of what I do I still do outside the law, but there are always people to be hunted, people who deserves it, and taking them alive is a challenge in its own… So I'm happy. It's almost surprising to realize, but yes, I am. And I know who I have to thank for it. I will take him out tonight… a nice place, not one of those loud obnoxious places. He will roll his eyes at the fancy menu, but I know he likes it. I'm still trying to figure out what more he might like… Sometimes I feel like I am on a minefield. I've never been in a relationship with a man before. I've had a few experiences, quite a few, actually, though I hope that won't tarnish your image of me, but those have been hookups, one night stands… stress-relief, in the military, mostly. This is new… and I want to make it work without suddenly treating him like a woman, because he's _not _one, and that's part of why I love him… I think he understands… I might buy him a rose tonight anyway, though, just to see if I can get him to blush. His ears turn red when he's really thrilled about something but tries to hide it… like when I gave him the apartment key… I tried to make that into a bit of a romantic gesture, because I didn't want to just shove it in his hand…

And, yes, in your eyes that might make me a softie, but I already told you: you don't know me. You know my image, like you know Robin's image. Have you any idea how many nights he has cried himself to sleep in my arms? How many nights I have woken up, drenched in sweat, with the names of my dead children on my lips? He's there for me then, when no one else is. That matters. That matters a lot.

So if you would ask me what he is to me, this teenage hero, the answer is pretty simple.

He's my angel.

_The End_

* * *

A/N; the prompt for this drabble was the last sentence... I tried to write this as a freestanding story without having any universes in mind, but of course a few slipped into my thoughts anyway… The arguments are the same old ones, the ones that always seem to come up when this pairing is discussed… not that us fan girls have a lot of problems with them... ;) I don't know if you found this very interesting, but it was a good exercise for me, actually… made me think about how I write the characters and what I might want to work with in the future…

So…. this was it! I hoped you have enjoyed several of the stories this year… don't forget to go back to the previous chapter and vote for a sequel if you haven't, and I'll see you on New Years!

All the best!

Your Mama Duck

/Wynja


	26. 31 See No Evil, Hear No Evil II

**A/N: **Yes again with the unimaginative titles.. I just want the sequel to be easy to find for those looking… is what I claim, instead of just being too lazy to think up something clever…

Anyway, **HAPPY NEW YEAR!** I hope it will be a great one, but for now, the sequel winner by one vote… I'd like to thank **Tinclay **and **Bacontheft, **among others, for a few ideas to get me started! ;)

* * *

**See No Evil, Hear No Evil II **

Alone. Trapped. Scared. What those words had meant to Robin before, paled in comparison to what they did now. Utter isolation. Helplessness. Terror. No one was touching him anymore, hadn't been for a long while, but the teen's body was still tense as a bow-string, his breaths coming in short gasps of air, while his heart hammered against the inside of his rib-cage like it was trying to break out of it.

He wasn't screaming anymore, at least he didn't think he was. His whole throat felt like a burn-wound, and he could taste blood in his mouth. Maybe it was his imagination, or maybe he had bit his own lip in his panic. He struggled against the bonds again, but the padded leather straps didn't budge. Padded… Robin snorted to himself, at least in his own head. Padded restraints. _Humane_. Like it would ever be humane to strap someone down to a bed. Well, he was rather sure that Slade didn't consider the comfort-factor when he got them… Robin tugged at the ones around his wrists once more, just because he _had_ to. He _had_ to fight. He couldn't let Slade…

Robin stopped himself in the middle of that thought. He couldn't afford to think about what had happened, where Slade had touched him… what that touch had insinuated. He was the prisoner of a man who had tried to beat him into submission before, and, when that failed, tried to kill him. It was the mortal danger he had to focus on, because that was all he could handle at the moment.

Time passed, maybe half an hour. Robin kept waiting for a touch, or a buzz from the wristband still around his right arm, pushed down against his hand by the restraint. There was no way he could press the button now, even if he wanted to. And he didn't want to. He told himself that he would happily starve to death on that bed if he didn't have to feel Slade's hands on him again. He told himself that until a pressure in his lower stomach announced a call from nature.

Robin ignored it. He was good at that. You couldn't be a hero if you had to take bathroom-breaks in the middle of a fight. The minutes ticked by and he tried to keep count in his head, just to have something else to focus on. In a way, the urge to pee had calmed him down a bit, and he began to think over the decision he had to make. Should he call out for Slade? He didn't want to, he really, _really_ didn't, but the pressure had become a discomfort, and now it was almost painful. Robin clenched his teeth together. He would _not_ call out. He would _not _ask the man for help.

Almost an hour later, he did. He began at a normal speaking voice, saying just the man's name, and then bracing himself for the touch. When none came, he called out louder. In the end he screamed. Slade didn't come. Had he lost his voice too, Robin wondered? Maybe from the screaming, maybe the words only came out as a faint hiss. Maybe Slade_ couldn't_ hear him? Maybe he had left? Maybe he would really never come back? Maybe he was standing right next to the bed, a hairsbreadth away, laughing at him? Maybe- Robin could feel his heart speeding up again and tried to take some deep breaths. He had tried to move his wristband around so he could try to somehow press the button, but it had a raised plastic edge around so it couldn't be pushed by mistake, something Robin was cursing it for now.

No Slade came. In the end Robin felt himself lose control and a wet warmth spread below him, the air taking on an acrid smell. He sobbed, feeling so ashamed of himself, but there was nothing to do but let it all go; he didn't have the strength left to try to hold anything in.

The wetness had turned cold and crept half way up his back, making his tights and shirt soggy. Every time he moved the mattress seemed to make it worse. At least it smelled. Robin almost found it funny that the smell of urine could be a comfort, of sorts, to him, only because he _could_ feel, taste and smell. That was all… but at least it was _something_.

He had fallen asleep out of exhaustion when the touch came, startling him awake as he cried out. His hand was turned palm up and held firmly and Robin forced himself to focus on the letters written there.

D-I-R-T-Y...B-O-Y

Robin didn't bother answering, but he could feel a blush rise on his cheeks.

S-H-O-W-E-R

Robin found himself nodding hesitantly. He wanted to be clean, but the concept felt threatening nonetheless.

B-E-H-A-V-E

Robin clenched his teeth in a silent snarl, but nodded once more.

"I'll behave if you do," he growled.

His reply was a pat on his hand, which could mean anything, really.

His restraints were taken off, one at a time, and Robin_ did_ behave. It would be idiotic to do anything else, as he had no chance in hell of escaping, after all. He'd probably run right into a wall and knock himself out while Slade calmly watched.

A tug on the shoulder from the man signaled for him to stand up and Robin made a face as his clothes stuck to the soggy mattress.

They started walking, Robin being steered by Slade's hand on his neck, something which made the teen's skin itch. It didn't take long before he tried to shrug the hand off, and surprisingly, it disappeared. Completely. Which made Robin stop. He was suddenly alone in an unknown space once more, but, he figured, this was what Slade wanted, the man wanted to play on his fears. The hero wouldn't let him and just snorted, as he took a few steps forward in spite. Suddenly the floor disappeared.

The feeling of falling seemed to last for hours, though, in fact, his arm was grabbed roughly almost instantly.

"Very funny," Robin grumbled as he caught his breath and was led down just two or three steps.

His lesson's wasn't to end there, however. Every mistake he did, every time he hesitated or otherwise didn't follow the order of the hand around the back of his neck, he was either slammed into a wall, left to fend for himself for a long time or pushed so he stumbled to the ground. The walk to the shower took an eternity, and the teen was sure that Slade was leading him in circles; his lair simply couldn't be_ that_ big.

When they finally came to the bathroom, Slade taught Robin that him sliding his hand up on his neck a little meant he should lift his foot on the next step. Robin didn't know this, of course, and slammed his big toe into the threshold. Slade pulled him back and made the same movement again, and this time, the teen understood.

"You could have explained all this to me before, you know… sadistic bastard…" Robin growled and got the back of his head slapped for it.

Slade's touch didn't return for a while after that, but the teen sensed a change in the texture of the air, which had gotten warmer and damper, and understood that the man had started the shower. He just waited patiently, too tired and bruised after the walk to do anything else. His bare feet could feel square tiles on the floor, and there was a certain comfort in that. Tiled bathrooms, were, after all, not uncommon, and he could picture it easily.

When Slade's touch returned it was to undress him. Robin didn't want the man to, especially after that fondle, but he _did _want to get out of the stinky, cold wet clothes and feel hot water and soap on his body again, so after some hesitation he complied. He got a pat on the head as a reward.

Any hope of being left alone to shower was shattered quickly, and the great feeling of hot water against his skin was wrecked by Slade's hands gliding over it as well. The hands didn't stop on his back either, oh, no. They went everywhere, and as Robin tried to cover his groin, yelling that he had already washed there, his head was smashed into the tiles so hard that he lost consciousness for a few seconds. When he came to his chest was pressed up against the wall and Slade's soapy fingers were between his cheeks, brushing over his entrance.

"No-!" He couldn't move and his objection only made the pressure against his back increase. Nothing more happened, however, and the touch just moved on, cleaning him. Still, the point, so to speak, was taken.

"So the deal is you can do anything to me and if I don't want to play along you just beat me up until I do?" Robin muttered.

His hand was grabbed and moved in the way he knew meant "yes".

"Yeah, well, prepare to beat me up a _lot_," the teen growled. "You should take a nap or something… gather your strength."

There was another pat on his head and Robin snorted.

"You're so brave, Slade. Beating up a blind and deaf teenager… but sure… you could never really defeat me before, could you? Had to threaten my friends… if you think you have a better shot this time, think again."

Robin had wondered if he would rile Slade up with his little speech, but again he only got a pat on his head, complete with a little hair-ruffle. He wished he had gotten a slap instead.

He stood still while Slade dried him, thoroughly, with a towel, and then his neck was grabbed again in the 'walking' style. Robin dug his heels in.

"No! I'm naked! Give me a towel or s-" he didn't know exactly what happened, but he was suddenly on his knees on the tiles, his head and whole upper body hurting. Again the message was clear; don't argue.

The walk was much, much shorter and then he was suddenly pushed through what he thought was a doorway and then released. He went flying, more or less, and just got a hand up in time to stop himself from crashing head-first into a wall.

"Home sweet home, huh?" he mumbled and felt around. The walls were different, though… they were perfectly smooth to his touch while the others had been rough. The floor was different too. He was somewhere else.

"Where is this?" he asked, but he got no answering touch. The wrist-band had been taken off before the shower and not returned. "Fine…" he muttered and walked in a straight line from where he had hit the wall towards what must be the door. About ten steps later his outstretched hand found the wall… and then more wall… and more… he walked along it wondering what was happening, because the door _should_ be there, somewhere. There wasn't any. All he could feel was the smooth surface, even when he walked back and forth from corner to corner.

_Alright, maybe I didn't really fall straight in, maybe it's on the other side…_ he figured, and started exploring the next wall, finding that door-free, as well. When he started along the next one, his knees suddenly found a bed, though, which was something. A bed meant that he was supposed to say here, and that it wasn't, as his overstressed mind had conjured up, some sort of gas-chamber or something. If it was, it was a comfortable one, judging by the quality of the bed.

"Guess this is my new room, then…" he mumbled to himself and then let out a little desperate laugh as he realized that he couldn't hear it… speaking to himself was suddenly even _more_ useless. The bed was the only thing in the room. It was a queen-size with a real mattress and sheets, where Robin might have expected a blanket in the corner at most. Otherwise the place seemed empty, however, but, on the other hand, what use would a desk be? Or a bookshelf? Or a TV? He felt his stomach go cold as he briefly wondered if he would ever have use of any of those things again. But no. He had to stay positive. He _would_ hear and see again, it was only a matter of time.

As he felt over the bed he found a small pile of fabrics, which, he happily found out, were clothes. Just a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants, but that was more than enough. He felt a bit clever as he found the labels, making sure that he put the items on right, and then he sank down on the bed. Nothing much else to do. A little while later he pulled his feet up, curled up under the covers and fell asleep.

He woke up from someone shaking his shoulder, and, apart from that, the first thing he noticed was how hungry and thirsty he was. He didn't know how long it had been since he ate last, but now his stomach reminded him to refuel, and quickly.

"Hungry…" he mumbled. "Thirsty."

-Yes- his hand was grabbed and moved up and down.

"Gonne let me starve?"

-No-

"Oh, that's nice of you…" Robin snorted sarcastically.

-Yes-

Robin snorted again.

His hand was turned, palmed up, as Slade began to spell something out.

T-R-A-D-E

"Trade? Yeah, sure, you can have my blindness if you want," the teen scoffed.

Then a hand landed on his groin.

"Hell no! _No_! No way!"

Slade's grip firmed, but since Robin had a pretty god idea where the man was because of it, he let his fist fly and hit the man in the jaw, hard. Unfortunately Slade had an even _better _idea of where_ Robin _was, and the return strike had the teen flat on his back on the bed.

Despite his best efforts Robin ended up handcuffed with his hands behind his back, sitting between Slade's knees, being held against the man's chest. He still struggled, but stilled as something cold was pressed against his lips. Robin recognized the rim of a glass immediately and hesitantly opened his mouth. His fears, and they had been many, turned out to be ungrounded, as he soon tasted nothing but cold, fresh water. He drank eagerly, but Slade only let him have a few gulps, which did nothing to quench his thirst.

"More!" Robin growled.

His answer was a hand sliding down his chest and stomach.

"No, d-" but the glass was back, and Robin really wanted the water, although Slade's other hand was still on its way down to completely forbidden territory. He took a few gulps, but then yelled out again, and tried to twist away. The glass disappeared but the hand stayed. They sat still for that for a long time, while Robin's stomach churned and his tongue and dry lips were crying out for more to drink. The glass came back once or twice, but as soon as Robin tried to take a sip, the hand moved and he pulled away.

"Just let me drink! Please!" Robin cried out desperately after what must have been at least half an hour. The hand on his lower stomach just moved in a little circle as if to point out to him that it could easily be arranged.

Robin fought an internal battle with himself, both at a physical and psychological level. How long could he go without nutrition? How far did Slade intend to go? Could he live with it… this… _trade_? He didn't know the answers to any of the questions, but after another long wait he could feel his resolve crack.

"Fine! he snarled. "Just let me drink!"

Robin tried to ignore the feeling of Slade's hand fondling him through the thin fabric of the sweatpants while he drank his fill. As the hand began to slide under the waistband, however, he drew the line.

"No!" the hand stopped as if surprised, but Robin continued. "Not… not without food."

It could have been his imagination, but he thought he felt a small vibration from the man's chest, as if he was laughing.

Robin ignored him and expected the man to either go right ahead and do whatever he wanted to anyway, which would, somehow, earn him a knee in the face, Robin promised himself, or leave and get food. Slade did neither, but suddenly something soft which smelled like heaven pressed against Robin's lips. It was a ham sandwich, and as Robin took his first bite, Slade's hand slipped into his trousers.

He ate as quickly as he possibly could, and asked for some more water to wash it all down.

"That's it! Stop!" he growled and the man did.

N-O...M-O-R-E was written on his thigh, and Robin understood that it was a question.

"Hell no," he snorted. He might still be hungry, but he didn't need to be full, he just needed enough to stay alive, and Slade had fondled him enough.

The unwanted touch disappeared and Robin was pushed forward a bit so Slade could unlock the handcuffs and then get up. Robin wanted to give the man a black eye, or throat, but at the same time he didn't want any more pain himself and he knew that that was coming if he tried anything, so he did the smart thing and just sat there. A few words, however, would probably only earn him a slap…

"See? You didn't even mange to get me _hard_, Slade… seems like you didn't get anything out of it, now, did you?" Robin leered. For a while it had really been touch and go about his body responding but the teen was proud about his control. After all, he had trained his body_ to_ respond to touches like that, the quicker the better, and he was glad it hadn't listened this time.

A hand closed around his wrist and Robin, who had expected that slap, wondered what the man would spell out for him this time. His hand was lifted, however, and pressed against something slippery and hot. A second later something wet and warm hit Robin's cheek and nose. It took the teen a moment to understand what had happened. First he thought the man had spit in his face, but then he recognized the faint smell and put two and two together.

"You… you PIG!" he yelled and pulled his hand away. His rage then got the better side of him and he lounged in the direction of the man, only to hit nothing but air and then the floor. Hard. A hand patted his ass, and he kicked out and up, but hit nothing again. Getting a hit in on Slade was difficult enough under normal circumstances, unless you managed to surprise him, and Robin did not have any such luck.

A bit stubbornly he tried to hit the man again and again, he just needed _one_ hit, he told himself, to feel a little bit better. But although some light, teasing, punches rained down on him, whenever he turned around, Slade was gone. After a while the punches stopped and Robin moved through the small room as fast as he could with his arms outstretched to try to find out if the man was still there, in a weird version of 'blind man's buff'.

"Fine…. fucking coward…" Robin growled as he gave up, and wiped his face thoroughly on the sheets on the end of his bed. He sat down heavily and slumped over, letting his hands support his head. What the fuck was he supposed to do? He had been trained to fight in darkness, or at least near darkness, but that included relying on his_ hearing_… what was he supposed to rely on now? His sense of smell? Right now, all he could smell was Slade's cum… Robin half gagged and shot up from the bed and started to pace. He quickly learned how many steps he could take, and being able to walk without having his hands in front of him made him feel slightly accomplished. He knew he had about as much of a chance as a gold-fish in a frying-pan at the moment, but he couldn't just give up…. it was just that he had no idea what his other options might be… or if there really even _were_ any.

It took a long time before Slade returned, his touch to Robin's shoulder frightening the teen badly again.

"I want- hic!- the buzz-hic!-er back!" he yelled through the hiccups he had embarrassingly enough gotten because of the scare.

T-R-A-D-E

"No!"

Robin could feel the man starting to move away and grabbed his arm.

"You're not going anywhere! Why am I not better? You said I'd get better!"

T-R-A-D-E

Robin growled and pushed the man away.

"Fuck off."

When there still was no reply of any kind after a few minutes, Robin did another sweep of the room and decided that Slade must have left again. Probably.

It was hard, almost impossible, to judge the passing of time. He was getting hungrier and thirstier again, however, and, horribly enough, natured called again… in a worse way than before.

As there_ had_ to be a door, unless Slade had suddenly learned how to teleport through walls like Raven, Robin decided to make another effort of finding it. It was something to do, and he desperately needed distractions. The palm of his hands still couldn't detect anything, but then he used his nails, dragging them slowly over the wall, and exactly where he thought the door must be, he found the tiniest of cracks, and then another one. He started pounding on it, trying to get the man's attention.

When nothing happened Robin realized that Slade probably had cameras in the room, and listening devices as well, no doubt.

"Slade! I need the bathroom!" After waiting a few minutes, to give the man some time to get his ass over to his room and let him out, Robin repeated himself. A few times over he did this, and then he groaned. He would _not _crap himself… even if he did it in a corner and wiped himself on a strip of sheet or something, it would still stink… and considering that smell was one of his few _working _senses…

As the minutes ticked by he got more desperate. In the end there was only one thing he hadn't tried.

"Okay… okay, _trade_!" In just moments he felt a slight draft against his skin and raised his hand, which was caught by Slade's larger one. "I want to go to the bathroom, and I want to be in there alone… what will that cost me?" he growled.

His hand was brought down to what he realized was Slade's crotch, and moved over it in a very suggestive way.

"Fine… on top of the clothes!"

-No-

Robin sighed. Slade could have asked for worse, however, and he was really in a hurry, so he nodded.

Much too soon they were back in the room. Robin had counted the steps to the bathroom now, and made a mental note of the few turns. He couldn't be sure that he had really been alone in there, but if the sick fucker wanted to watch him take a dump there was nothing he could do to stop him, the teen guessed.

He was made to sit down on the bed while Slade stood in front of him and then his hand was wrapped around a half hard shaft, but not before a glob of something cool had been dropped into the palm. Lubricant of some sort, Robin figured… at least it wasn't spit… it smelled slightly familiar, and he tried to focus on that as he moved his hand up and down. Slade was big down there, which the teen felt was unfair, but he sharply turned his mind back to the scent. It was probably lotion… Robin didn't use lotion much except for… well… what he was doing now, as a matter of fact and… could it be the same kind? Even though he used one of the biggest and cheapest brands, so the coincidence might not be that huge, it was still a very disturbing thought.

The teen decided that being awkward and shy would only make this hell last longer, so he worked the shaft hard and fast, using both hands after a while, as he started to feel a slight cramp in his right arm.

"Come on you bastard! Come!" he growled after a while. One of his own sessions would have been over minutes ago, for god's sake…

The hair on the back of his head was grabbed and his neck jerked back, in what Robin first thought was a punishment.

"What-"

The cum hit him somewhere much worse this time. Much, _much_ worse.

Robin spluttered and spat, but the taste of the first rope of liquid stayed, and his head was held still as more globs hit his face. Yelling turned out to be a bad idea too. He pushed against the man, having released him instantly, but the pain from his neck and hair made it too hard for him to gather his strength and strike out like he wanted.

As soon as he was released Robin dove for the sheet to wipe his face.

"You… sick…" he gasped, feeling tears burn his eyes. He thought Slade had left when there had been no sign of him in a while and Robin curled up on the bed. The mattress sank down and he tried to bolt, but was caught and ended up as the little spoon. He struggled and did so even harder as he felt his pants being pulled down.

"No! No trade! No!" he yelled.

A finger lazily traced letters across his lower stomach.

T-H-I-S...O-N-E...I-S...F-R-E-E

"I don't want-" at that moment Robin felt the man's groin press against his naked behind and realized that firstly, Slade was half hard again, and secondly that the situation could get very painfully worse very quickly. It was time to try to bargain again.

"Only…. only touching… okay? Nothing… nothing more!" Robin had a feeling that his voice didn't sound as firm as he wanted it to, but the finger moved in a slow "O" and "K".

Robin stared blindly ahead, not much of a choice there, really, and tried to focus on how much he hated the touch. He had nothing else to preoccupy himself with this time, however, and after a while Slade's very talented hand managed to coax a few familiar stirrings in his groin. Robin tensed, something the man obviously noticed, because he picked up the speed a little.

Apart from the fact that it was _Slade_ doing this to him and not, say, a hot girl, it was so much better than doing it himself, and his body, once awakened, hurried to show its complete appreciation. Robin felt that vibrating-thing from the man's chest again and bit his lip.

He did his best to hold back, but it was all over an embarrassingly short time later.

"Happy?" he half growled, half sobbed as he tried to pull his pants up.

-Yes- the man had touched his hand only for as long as it took to make the nodding movement, and then the heat and weight behind Robin was gone.

"Yeah, go away! Don't come back!" Robin yelled after the man.

Slade might have obeyed him, Robin guessed, because he was hungry as hell and it must have been… a day? One and a half? He had fallen asleep again, several times, and didn't know. There was nothing much to do but sleep. He guessed he could offer the man a trade again, but he didn't want to. The stakes seemed to go up every time.

After he had finally used a corner as a bathroom, even Slade seemed to understand that Robin didn't want to play his game anymore and visited again, with half a glass of water, a dry piece of bread and a bathroom break.

"Bread and water, huh? How imaginative…" the teen snorted.

T-R-A-D-E

"No."

Slade came by very seldom, about once a day, Robin thought, for his trip to the bathroom and his bread and water. It kept him alive but weak, and the teen knew he couldn't go on like this if he would have any hopes of surviving. Besides, being alone was driving him insane. He thought he heard sounds and saw things now and again… creeping footsteps, someone breathing, hands, reaching for him through the dark, eyes glowing from where he knew the corner of the room to be. He only really saw and heard things in his dreams, though, but even those were fading as the fatigue set in.

One day, as Slade was about to leave after his short visit, Robin held on to his arm.

"T… trade?"

* * *

_Materialistically_ Robin's world slowly improved after that. After giving the man the first blow-job he was given four regular, although small, meals a day… which were wasted for the first two days as Robin couldn't stop from throwing up. He learned, though, Slade made sure of that. Any setbacks and the man would simply leave him, sometimes so long that Robin had to actually use the corner, and his stomach screamed from hunger… those times yelling "trade" didn't work; he was being punished. When Slade came back, Robin learned to apologize.

After a long time, weeks, maybe over a month, Robin was taken out of his room more and more. Slade introduced him to the gym, where the teen appreciated the treadmill, which was safe enough for him to use and gave him a sense of freedom. There was a the huge room where he had woken up as well; a combined lab, computer central and workshop, as far as Robin could tell. He was amazed that he hadn't noticed the smell of it when he had woken up…. he could make out the paints and oil clearly now, and the slight burnt smell from welding… actually he could distinguish every room from its smell, even the corridors.

When it came to the molesting Robin had let the man got as far as fingering him, something that had been very uncomfortable in the beginning, but he was starting to handle it better. He would not, however let Slade's cock go anywhere near his ass, something, it seemed, Slade had decided to change.

-I...W-A-N-T...T-O...F-U-C-K...Y-O-U-

"No."

-I...W-I-L-L...T-R-A-D-E...Y-O-U-

"There's nothing I want," the teen snorted. "And if you take away my food again, fine! I'll starve to death." He hesitated a little, because he really didn't want to point it out, but it was obvious, wasn't it? "Why are you doing this, anyway? You could just rape me…"

-N-O...F-U-N...I-N...T-H-A-T-

"Oh, I think you'd find some…" Robin muttered.

-L-E-T...M-E...M-A-K-E...Y-O-U...A-N...O-F-F-E-R-

"Fine." Robin knew he wouldn't get out of this conversation before Slade said so anyway.

-Y-O-U-R...H-E-A-R-I-N-G-

Robin felt like he had just been hit in the face with an iceberg.

"You can… you can _do_ that?" He had asked many times but the man had refused to answer any questions about his disabilities, and his situation had remained the same.

-Yes- his hand was nodded this time.

"But… how…?"

-B-L-O-C-K-E-D...N-E-R-V-E-S-

"Ad you can… _unblock_ them? For my sight too?"

-Yes-

"Then I want both!"

-No-

"Sight instead then?" the teen bartered, believing that that sense would make it easier to escape.

-No-

"If… if I agree, will you give me my hearing back before…?"

-No-

"So you might be lying and not cure me?"

-Yes-

Robin frowned.

"I…. I need to think… may I go to the gym?"

-Yes-, O-N-E...H-O-U-R-

He walked to the gym by himself, counting his steps and tracing the wall with one hand. He ran until his t-shirt was more or less soaked, before the treadmill slowed down, signaling to him that Slade was there.

He reached out with a hand as the treadmill came to a complete stop, and it was taken.

-T-R-A-D-E-

Robin had thought long and hard. Weighing the shame and the physical pain he was sure to experience against the promise, or lie, of getting his hearing back. Being able to hear, to communicate directly with someone, even though it had to be Slade at the moment…. maybe get more questions answered… just to hear his own voice… it was too much for him, too much to turn down.

"Yes… trade."

* * *

Slade took him for a shower first, which was even more intimate than usual, but Robin didn't see any point in objecting. He tried to focus on the nice scent of the soap, breathing it in so he could almost taste it, instead of how nervous he was. He knew, of course, in perfect detail, how big Slade was. He knew every vein, every bump, every extra-sensitive spot. The man had also taught him that he could take three fingers up his ass, but, Robin figured, the cock was thicker and much longer. Would it hurt? Could something that long actually fit in him, or would something be in the way? He shook his head and tried to let his fears go. People, after all, had anal sex, and more than once, right, which would mean they survived it… and maybe Slade's size wasn't that uncommon, he had nothing to compare with, after all… he half chuckled to himself as he realized that, had he been his old self and back at the tower now, he would have researched it and probably made a chart… Slade insisted on cleaning him 'back there' again, and also dried him off, just like the very first shower, but Robin had to give the man some credit for not seeming to be in any rush. He hoped that would continue, as he was pretty sure that 'slow' was the way to go.

He was being led back to his room naked and then made to lie down on the bed. Slade was a rough man, Robin knew, with no patience for disobedience, so he quickly complied. He had some fresh bruises, most of them from letting his mind wander and not paying attention, which was something the man obviously hated. Speaking back to him was, on the other hand, not _always _punished, and Robin didn't really know where the line went there. Sometimes he could call the man the worst things he could come up with and only get a pat on the head, and other times a mere mutter could have him flying into the closest wall head first.

Slade was naked when he joined him on the bed, the man covering Robin's body with his own. A breath against the teen's lips told him what would happen next and he parted them slightly as Slade kissed him. This was something Robin really had been having trouble with in the beginning. Kissing was simply too intimate, more so than sex. Somehow that should be reserved for someone you loved, he had felt, more than blowjobs and hand jobs, because those where just for getting off. Kissing was… affectionate… well, maybe not the way Slade kissed, because the man tended to be just as dominating as usual, although he could be teasing too. This time, however, Robin welcomed the kiss, as it was a distraction.

He let his hands roam slowly up the man's arms, coming to rest at his neck and cheek… it was another thing he had been taught: to touch back. When it came to the man's face, however, Robin had volunteered, and, by now, he could map it out pretty well. He had no idea of Slade's coloring, of course, but he would probably recognize him if he got his sight back… which was the goal, really.

Up until now he had thought that he would regain his senses gradually, and learning that Slade actually _controlled_ his recovery had been very unwelcomed news. He would have no element of surprise on his side, pretending, for example, to still be blind when he wasn't… he had more or less counted on that to escape.

Robin was brought back to the present by a sharp bite on his bottom lip. Slade had noticed him zoning out.

"Sorry…" he mumbled and arched his neck, inviting the man to move the kissing downwards. Slade didn't seem interested in moving very low today, however, something the teen had hoped for. Slade did it sometimes, and it felt amazing, but, today, Robin just felt his knees being pushed apart.

"What, no foreplay?" he muttered, trying to hide his fear behind a joking shield.

-Y-O-U...H-A-D...W-E-E-K-S...O-F...T-H-A-T- the man pointed out.

"I don't think that counts…" Robin snorted and hissed as a lubed finger slid into him. A hand rubbing in circles on his inner thigh told him to relax and be ready for the next one.

After the usual three fingers Slade's hand disappeared and Robin bit his lip as his legs were raised to rest in the crook of the man's arms, lifting his ass up a little. Then there was a pressure at his entrance which steadily grew.

"UUhh…. Slade… I … I don't think… I… AH!" the man had bent down and bit his nipple as he gave a hard thrust with his hips and Robin felt himself filled to the brim. Any stirrings he had gotten at being fingered were long gone, but the man didn't seem to mind. Instead Slade repositioned himself a bit and then began a slow thrusting which grew quicker and harder with what felt like every stroke. Robin clung to him, digging his nails into the man's back in silent retribution, but the searing pain he had expected didn't happen. That might be a small blessing, but he had learned to appreciate those.

There were small bursts of pleasure when his prostate was rubbed, but not enough for Robin to get hard… it was all too strange, too scary, for him to enjoy, and, more importantly, he didn't _want_ to enjoy it. Slade had taken a sadistic pleasure in making him come, and the teen was glad that he didn't seem focused on that now.

Robin whimpered as the thrusts grew even harder and more erratic, bringing some pinching pain with them, but then, with a feeling of added warmth inside him, it was over.

Slade stayed inside him for a while before pulling out, and Robin started to fear that he had a second round in mind. He made a face when the cock finally slipped free of him, the sensation something of the weirdest things he had ever felt. He pulled the covers over himself when Slade left and curled up. He didn't know if the man was just dressing or had left the room, and he didn't know if he was going to get the cure right away or not, but he wouldn't ask for it. Slade usually kept his end of their deals, even though he pushed them until they almost broke, getting as much as he could out of a situation while giving as little as possible.

It didn't take the man that long to return, actually, and Robin was made to sit up, leaning against the headrest. Then something cold and wet was swiped on a small area of his upper arm.

"I'm… I'm getting a shot?" Robin asked.

-Yes-

Ironically, the needle hurt more going in than Slade's cock had, but the teen took a long breath through his nose while whatever was in the syringe was pushed into his system. He knew it could be poison, he knew he might be taking his last breaths at that very moment, but he simply had to do something he also had been taught but hated above all other things; he had to trust Slade.

-I-T...W-I-L-L...T-A-K-E...A...W-H-I-L-E...T-O...W-O-R-K...S-O...R-E-S-T- he was ordered, and Robin lay down on the bed again and closed his eyes, trying hard to hear anything at all, until he fell asleep.

He woke up to a buzzing in his ears and a strange hissing noise, which turned out to be his breathing.

"Slade?" his own voice made him jump. It sounded strangely monotone, so he tried again. "Slade?" Better.

A swishing noise made his head shot up and turn into the direction where he knew the door was. He had found out that it was a sliding door, but the sound was, of course, alien to him.

"Awake, I see."

The man's voice had him shivering, confirming for the first time that it really _was_ Slade that was keeping him prisoner. It was deep, dark and filled with its usual gleeful malice that Robin remembered all too well. The only thing new was the slight note of a smug purr. It all made Robin's heart race and all the fear that had gradually died down to some sort of reluctant acceptance during the past weeks came back. This was Slade. _Slade_.

"If I hadn't heard you I would have thought that the serum failed and got your voice instead…" the man chuckled.

"Don't laugh at me!" Robin growled.

"And don't take that tone with _me_. I worked hard to get you to understand your place, boy, and if you think you can get out of it now I can just as easily take your hearing away again."

"You… you can?"

"Oh yes… after all, I designed the weapon that took it in the first place."

"You… you mean…. Sensus?"

"He was one of mine, yes… more like a hired actor than anything else, really… I made up his whole character, including the gloves which hid the weapon."

"How does it work?" Robin couldn't help himself, he needed to know.

"Nano-bots, of course; blocking the sensory nerves and the sense-centers in the brain. Just having eardrums or vocal cords is no use when the brain is stopped from using them or understanding the input. The shot contained other nano-bots, programmed to dismantle the original ones blocking your hearing."

"So you really can make me deaf again…" Robin stated miserably.

"Very easily."

"And give me my sight back?"

"Yes, just as easily."

Robin was quiet for a while. He had so many questions but also so much anger welling up inside him that he _knew _he had to put a lid on.

"Why are you doing this? What's the reason for it?" he asked, trying to sound as level-headed as possible.

"There must be a reason?" the man asked innocently. "Well, in that case… I believe it is to entertain myself…. you see, you are_ so_ much fun to play with, Robin, and I'll be enjoying you for a long, long time, I'm sure."

The teen felt bile rise up in his throat and decided to turn the conversation in another direction before he snapped.

"How did you find me? You told me Sensus was dead?"

"Yes, I let the building fall over him… it was _you _I needed to get out, after all."

"My… my friends… you said they were okay?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

"But Raven was hit…?"

"Yes, and they found the nano-bots and managed to disable them, I'm afraid."

"Then they know you have me," Robin smirked feeling some hope flare up in his chest. "They will recognize your dirty-work, and-"

"Afraid not. The bots this time are very different and have become more or less main-stream… they might have suspected me, but Sensus was right there to take the blame, after all…"

"They_ must_ know! I've been gone for weeks!" Robin snorted.

"They think you are dead. Buried under the building somewhere. As the building collapsed I made sure there was a fire too… there wouldn't be much left of you if you had still been in there…"

"Still, they wouldn't believe-"

"They have moved on… it took a while for them to accept it, yes, but all the evidence pointed in one direction… you are just human, after all, Robin…." the purr in the man's voice was more distinct now, and the teen felt a hand sliding up his thigh. "Just a small, frail, human…"

"Don't touch m-" Robin started to snarl but his head was snapped to the side by a hard slap, complete with sound this time.

"Don't be difficult, my boy…" the man's voice was still purring, like nothing had happened. "You don't want to be difficult again, trust me… if you are, how will you ever get your sight back?"

* * *

In the weeks to come those words haunted Robin. There were no trade now; Slade simply took what he wanted, the unspoken threat of losing his hearing or never regaining his sight constantly hanging over the teen's head.

It was not all about sex, though, Slade made him work out more, which was mainly enjoyable, they even sparred which turned out to be very interesting. Slade tied bells to his wrists and ankles, all of them with a slightly different sound. Robin had to learn which was which and how they sounded when the man made different moves, and thus he could block oncoming punches and kicks, and also hear where the man was when he was moving around. It was an incredible feeling, which left the teen involuntary grinning from ear to ear after each session. He also enjoyed his hearing, even humming to himself, never wanting a silent moment. He asked Slade to be allowed to listen to music and was awarded with an afternoon listening to a classical concert on the radio. It was amazing, bringing tears to Robin's eyes. He could hear every instrument, every note, even picking out the slight mistakes, but those were beautiful to him as well.

All in all it was a very confusing time, half spent in rage and misery and half in perfect bliss.

"Uhgh!" Robin had ignored Slade's command once again and found himself flying off the treadmill. It wasn't fair, really, since he had been busy listening to his own heartbeats in his ears, and didn't have a clue that the man had muttered something. Most of the gym was still a bit of a mystery to him. He was only allowed to use the closest machines, but he knew the place was bigger, as the man led him through it to the sparring-mat. He was about to be very familiar with a wall he hadn't known was there, as he crashed into some sort of stand. His arms flew out to try to catch him, and as one arm caught what Robin thought was a rack of bo-staffs, the other hand brushed something cold and sharp. He pulled away like he hadn't noticed anything and turned around towards the sounds of the man walking up to him, reaching his hands out.

"Sorry," he grumbled. "I didn't hear you."

"I noticed. Pay better attention, Robin. It's time for dinner, a shower… and then I'll spend the whole night with you."

The teen knew better than to comment or object; he just nodded. Besides, now he had a plan.

* * *

It took several days before he got the opportunity to slip off the treadmill and towards the wall as Slade went to arrange some food. Robin could of course not be sure if the man was still watching him, but he played it carefully. This was just supposed to be a first assessment mission and might not lead anywhere. He pretended to stumble on the treadmill and get a cramp in his leg, getting off the thing and massaging his muscles, before he started limping around to 'walk it off'. He drew closer to where he now know the wall was and, holding a hand in front of him, found it. He tried not to stop and seem like he was examining what he now knew were weapons, but he found the staffs, and then a rack of swords. After that he hit jackpot, however: throwing knives. He thought about taking one, but the knowledge that Slade might be watching made him move on and he left the racks, walking back and forth a bit, pinning the exact location of the knives to the map in his mind.

"Got tired?" the voice made Robin spin around, but he was careful about seeming too guilty.

"Sorry… got a cramp… needed to stretch a bit."

"Fine. Time to eat," was all the man said, and, although he listened really carefully, Robin couldn't hear any suspicion in his voice.

Now when he had found a way to, hopefully, defeat Slade, Robin grew scared. What would happen if he failed? What would happened if he succeeded? He also knew that, this time, "defeating" his enemy couldn't mean an arrest… it had to end in death or at least an injury serious enough so that Robin would have time to escape… and that was daunting. He had never entered a fight intending to _kill_ anyone before. Well… not a sentient being, at least. He hated Slade, sure, more than anyone or anything, and he knew the Titan's would be able to cure his blindness, so he didn't need the man alive… and still, it took some time for him to bring himself to put his plan into action.

It began as they were sparring. Robin purposefully fell back until he was at the edge of the mat and then held p his hands.

"Hey, back up!"

"And why would I do that?" Slade chuckled, coming closer.

"I can't fight off the mat, I'll bump into things, it's not fair!" Robin objected. It was important not to appear like he wanted this, but, at the same time, he had learned exactly how to make Slade take the opposite stand. He had never dared try to manipulate the man like this before, though, in fear of getting caught.

"Oh, I think it's time to up the difficulty level a little," Slade answered, just as Robin had hoped he would, and the teen dove backwards as he heard a fist come flying. They fought for a long time, Robin falling back any which way, acting like he didn't know exactly where he was. Slowly, slowly, however, he guided them to the wall of weapons.

The teen was sweating in nervousness as well as exhaustion. The critical moment was only a second away. He was standing with his back to where the knives must be, and Slade was in front of him. The man was a little too close, however; Robin wouldn't have room to throw the projectile, but it was now and never.

He pretended to stumble, a hand going back to catch himself, but instead it grabbed the handle of a knife and came up swinging it in an arch. There was a guttural sound as the blade sliced across the man's throat, and Robin felt droplets of hot blood rain over him before he bolted. He heard the man's knees hit the floor and ran as fast as he could.

Only then did he realize that he didn't know where the exit was. Or how to open it. Slade was the one who opened the doors, and Robin didn't know how… but maybe the front door would be the normal, non-sliding kind? If only he could find it, and his hearing and sense of smell would tell him that he was close, he was sure. He rushed through the known corridors, as fast as he could, his hand sliding along the walls. Soon he was in unknown territory and he searched feverishly but couldn't find any doors at all, just twisting hallways going this way and that until Robin was lost. He stopped to catch his breath. A phone! If he found one he could use it now… if only to call 911 or any random number… a phone was smaller than a door, though, and he had never heard a signal or Slade talking into one. He moved on and on, until, suddenly, he smelled the stale sweat of the gym once more. He had come around in a circle somehow! Everything, the weeks of isolation, of Slade's cruel games, of the painful punishments, was just suddenly too much. He couldn't handle this! He couldn't deal! He was alone again, and he _hated_ being alone now. Once he had treasured some peace and quiet, but not it was one of the things he feared the most, even more than Slade. He just wanted to be safe, to be guided, not left to starve in a building with a rotting corpse. He collapsed against a wall and started sobbing.

"Feeling lonely, Robin?"

"Slade!" the teen was surprised by the spike of relief and happiness that shot up inside him as he made it to his feet and stumbled towards the sound, arms outstretched. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, please… please, don't leave… please…" he finally bumped into the man and clung to him, ignoring the sticky drying blood covering his chest.

"You're my little toy, Robin… I'm not ready to let you go quite yet…" the man purred as a hand came up to caress the teen's ass and the other grab his neck. "But you have been _very_ naughty… I think you're up for a few weeks of quiet-time…"

_The End_

* * *

A/N: What do you mean it's not an end? No, Robin didn't escape, but he's clearly rather broken, so it looks like Slade won… again. And no, I don't think there will be a third part to this, although feel free to write one! ;)

Note: The game 'blind man's buff' is also known as 'blind man's bluff'… I picked the one with the most hits on google… ;) Just so you know it's not a typo…


	27. Practice Makes Perfect

OOOOoopps!

This story "Practice Makes Perfect" was supposed to be published in "Delightful Drabbles" so it's moved there now. Sorry.


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